The Spear of Ares
by Faerlyte
Summary: Vincent arrives on Tifa's doorstep covered in blood. Cloud is lost in the desert in a race to find the legendary weapon of Ares the God of War. Can Tifa, Yuffie, and Vincent with some outside help find both before it's too late? TifaxVincent
1. Chapter 1: Trouble On the Doorstep

**1. Trouble on the Doorstep **

**Disclaimer:** I-don't-own-ff7…but I do own that strange and currently 'unknown' original character wandering around.

**A/N:** OMG, she's alive! – That's what you're thinking, right? Hehehe, well, something along those lines anyway. Yes, I'm back finally and with another story! I've got a feeling that this one will be a lot of fun too. It will revolve mainly around Tifa, Yuffie, Cloud and Vincent with one or two original characters running around for some comic relief. One other thing, can't quite remember the complete map of ff7 or the exact landmarks, but I figure I have some artistic license here . So, I've created some new terrain that may or may not have been there before. Some people may think that a few characters are OOC, and they might be right, but I'll do my best to prevent that from happening.

Read and enjoy.(This is in Tifa's POV – What a surprise, lol)

* * *

**Chapter 1**

I sat atop a chair, wrapped in a thick wool blanket with a mug of tea clasped tightly in my hands, while gazing idly at rows of shelves and their antique decorations. Some display cases contained weapons more than a hundred years old, and some ancient trinkets and items from lost civilizations. One could feel the powers of old coming to life within these relics from ages past. Or maybe it was a cold-medicine induced hallucination.

A deep-throated rasping cough resonated through the room with several more following in succession. When the fit had ceased I was spitting out the remnants in a nearby garbage. My chest was a furnice, my throat sore, and my nose raw. The stack of tissues on the counter before me was shrinking at an alarming rate.

The front door swung open gently with a whoosh of warm air. I managed to lift my head in reluctance at the visitor. _You're working, Tifa. Remember? Whose bright idea was this anyway?  
_

A customer. Now that was unusual. The poor soul didn't have a clue at what she was getting herself into by setting foot into this germ-infested facility.

It was a woman in her mid twenties, if I were to guess. She was dressed in a long black cloak, black breeches, a black half sleeve turtleneck, and knee high burgundy leather boots. Definitely not your typical visitor. Her hair hung down her back in a thick braid, nearly the length of mine, but was a dark ash blonde color with natural highlights of gold and red, and her eyes were a hazel, olive green color.

I watched with morbid curiousity as she explored the room, eyes skimming left and right. She turned suddenly and flashed me a smile. There was something extremely natural eminating from her, like she had spent her life among trees far away from the modern world. Her appearance was a dead ringer for it.

"This is amazing." She commented appreciatively. Her voice was strong, resonating, and slightly deeper than the average feminine voice.

I nodded silently and muffled the cough emerging from my chest. That was always a painful endeavor; it just exploded inside rather than out, which was considerably more agnozing. All for the sake of propriety.

Her eyes flickered at me in surprised concern, but she remained silent. The stranger eventually averted her gaze back to the shelves and was lingering on one of the books. It was the newest addition to my collection. The largest by far, it had a battered black cover and golden edged pages that were heavily worn with age. It was also one of the oldest.

"Can I look at this?" She inquired.

I hesitated, knowing that the book's condition rendered it a helpless victim to careless hands. It _was_ on the shelf though.

"If not, I understand." She added quickly, almost as if she'd been reading my mind.

"Go ahead." I answered. "You can look at it over at that table." I motioned to a corner of the room lit by a small ceiling lamp where there rested an oak table with benches on either side.

She gave a quick nod of thanks and pulled the book out with utmost care. Her hands were as careful with it as to hold an infant.

By now I couldn't help but be a bit curious as to what this person could possibly want with it. She was probably just interested in the pictures, but you never know. Maybe there was something of value in it.

I hadn't gotten around to a thorough study of it myself. I'd only taken a few glances since it had come into my possession, and the little I'd gleaned told of mythical objects and their whereabouts. Half of the indicated landmarks I'd never even heard of though. I had looked up one in fact, just to make sure, and there was definitely no account of a 'Rome' ever existing. It was puzzling to say the least that someone had gone to such effort to preserve a book that was useless.

To be fair, not all of it referred to non-existing places, but the items in question were all too impossible to be true. I admit that I was tempted to investigate some of them anyway, but they weren't your every day pieces of ancient history. They belonged to powerful Gods and Goddesses of mythology. One didn't just prance into their temples and take their possessions, which is why I had refrained from mentioning the book's secrets to Cloud when he brought it to me. He might not be able to pass up something like that.

Cloud had become quite the treasure hunter and a semi-archeologist, with the help of Vincent. It was obvious when Cloud first started that he was driven more by the hope that he might find some way to revive Aeris than anything else. He eventually moved on, but there are times when his eyes seem very distant and lost. He tries to thrive on learning about the past nowdays. As for Vinent...well, he tags along because he has no other place to be.

Amazingly enough, it was Vincent who gave me the idea for an antique shop. We'd collected so many artifacts through out our adventures that we couldn't just stuff them in a closet; there wasn't one big enough to hold all of it. That's when Vincent suggested beginning a business in artifacts and the possibilities of building a museum when or if our stock got big enough. I immediately fell in love with the notion.

It was a brilliant idea. Cloud and Vincent were constantly providing me with more things to add to my collection, and I had Yuffie to help out with the cleaning and housekeeping of them(we were located in Wutai). Not to mention the large sum of money people paid for these things, especially the museums. They practically sold their soul for whatever it was they wanted. Of course, I didn't give them _everything_. A lot of the business invovled trading for desired pieces that were absent in a particular collection.

The door slammed against the wall with a resonting bang and I was on my feet before I knew what happened. So was the customer at the table. Her hand moved with amazing quickness to a nearly concealed sword at her side. She didn't draw it.

She was first to reach the towering figure in the doorway, who appeared to have seen better days. His sudden collapse was brought up short as she caught him. I watched the scene play out in slow motion, transfixed with horror as recognition clicked in, and my heart stopped.

"Vincent!" The blanket dropped from my shoulders as I bolted to assist the girl in laying him down onto the floor.

His breathing was slow and barely audible, and he was obviously unconscious. There was dirt, blood, and sweat caked together on his clothes, and he was more pale than I ever remembered him being. He had come a long way fast at the expense of his body and health.

My eyes hovered frightfully over the ghastly wound in his side, and scanned over the rest with growing apprehension. The damage was so extensive that only a miracle seemed to keep him alive, a courtesy most likely from his demonic side.

As I reached out to inspect his injury I was caught by surprise when the stranger's hand grabbed me by the wrist. I pulled free reflexively and glared across at her.

"That's probably not a good idea." She explained flatly. "Just to be on the safe side--that cough won't help him any."

I nodded slowly. She had a point, but something would have to be done and quick. "You think a restore will help him?" I asked.

The woman paused as she was taking his pulse, and her brow furrowed in what seemed like confusion. She swallowed, "I don't really know...It doesn't hurt to try."

My arms were crossed tightly as I looked down at Vincent's still form. The bleeding was subsiding, but his injuries were numerous. He was stronger than your average mortal, if mortal was an accurate descriptioin, but immortality doesn't mean that he can't die. I didn't know to what extent his powers of rejuvination went and he wasn't looking so well now.

It's hard just standing by while a friend is unconsious on the floor of your antique shop too, covered in open wounds, waiting for his demonic powers to kick in. Not to mention it's bound to raise a few eyebrows from people passing by. We had to do something to help him. _I_ had to do something. "I'll go get some then. Keep an eye on him for me?"

She nodded. "You might want to grab some clean water and a cloth too." Her eyes drifted to the dried blood along his face. "He's a mess."

"Gotcha" I sprinted into the back of the store where we kept our cleaning solutions and other supplies.

There were plenty of buckets and cloths there, along with soap and water, and a collection of mastered materia. If these didn't work I'd have to sew him up by hand and wait for his body to do the rest. That made me shudder to think about--I'd had enough of that to last me a life time when we were traveling across the world and fighting daily.

I collected the requested items, washed my hands, and headed back to the front.

I stopped short as I came around the corner, nearly dropping my pale of water. Vincent was sitting, his back propped against the wall with hardly a mark on him save for the left over blood dried to his skin and clothes. His shirt was faultless(_I wonder how he manages that_), but more importantly there wasn't another breathing soul in the room. I was literally gaping at him when he glanced up to acknowledge my presence.

_What in Holy's name was going on?_

"You look as if you've seen a ghost." He said quietly with the hint of dry smirk.

The sound of his voice was just enough to jolt me from my trance. "I think I have."

My hand gripped the handle of the pale tightly as I stared down at him, momentarily lost in thought. There were too many more immediate problems that had to be addressed for me to get too caught up in that mystery though. Such as Vincent, for instance. His features were so osbscured by blood and his hair so matted so as to rendure him almost unrecognizeable. It was probably the first time ever that I noted Vincent looking truly awful.

"Here." I crossed the room and knelt over him. "You look terrible."

He grunted in response, but gave no protest.

I was mildly surprised when he did not pull away from the contact. Usually he was not so willing to cooperate, but he was amazingly calm as I went about carefully uncovering the handsome face beneath all the grime. He gave no indication that he even noticed me at all in fact. Only when I attempted to straighten his hair a little did he stop me, his fingers gently wrapping around my wrist and pushing me away.

The sudden touch of his skin against mine sent an unexpected shiver up my spine.

_Oh quit it, Tifa, _I thought sharply, glaring down at where he had touched me in mild irritation.

My focus shifted abruptly back to the situation at hand. I looked into his eyes worriedly as I belted two important questions, "What happened to you, Vincent? Where is Cloud?"

Vincent shifted his weight slightly and breathed a heavy sigh. "We…encountered some trouble and got separated."

I dropped the washcloth back into the pale, splattering water everywhere, and frowned deeply. There was an edge of hesitance in his tone that suggested he wasn't telling me everything. "Trouble? What sort of trouble? Not monsters..."

"No." He answered. "Opposing people."

"Opposing people?" I echoed, lifting a suspicious brow. "Why were they opposing?"

"They were after the same thing we were." He said brusquely.

_Don't give me that, Vincent Valentine...  
_

Vincent cunningly avoided my scrutinizing gaze. He knew he couldn't fool me that easy, but he was also as stubborn as a goat when it came to coughing up something that might put me in a dour mood.

They'd never had trouble with other competitors before, certainly nothing life threatening. I was under the impression that Cloud and Vincent had gone out to look for a book on the Accounts of Cetra History. Grant it, that was a very valuable piece if it could be found, but to kill for it? I don't think so.

A tickling in my throat gave warning to an imminent coughing fit. I quickly covered my mouth with my sleeve as I spun away from him and let fly with the deathly hacking. When it was finished Vincent was glowering at me, clearly disturbed by the disease inflicting me and its close proximity with his person. I couldn't blame him really. It wasn't something one smiled upon. _Damn cold anyway..._

"I washed my hands." I muttered quietly.

"Sorry." Vincent apologized abruptly, looking away. "I shouldn't have been so rude."

"No, it's ok." I assured him with a weak smile. "I don't want you to catch it either." I stood up and looked out the window oddly. "By the way, did you happen see that woman leave?"

Vincent's brow perked up slightly in curiosity. "No. Was there one here?"

"Yeah." I murmured in response, only half aware of his intent stare. "Your injuries... She must have healed you when I went to get the water and materia... I wonder who she was?"

"I vaguely remember feeling cold hands." He mentioned idly. "But I was far from consciousness at the time, and when I awakened I was alone and feeling slightly nauseous."

I glanced back at him apprehensively. "Are you ok now?"

He nodded. "Yes."

I lowered my head in puzzlement, putting Vincent in the background of my thoughts for the moment. The stranger's behavior on all accounts had aroused several mind-boggling questions. Why had she set me up so that she could disappear incognito? Why had she healed him, and how? And what did she want with the old book?

My eyes clenched shut as I tried to sort everything out in my mind, but all I could concentrate on was the awful smell of blood in the air. Before I knew it I was swooning around like a drunkard. Maybe it was the shock of the recent events, or perhaps it was the cold I was suffering from. I tend to think it was a combination of both.

Vincent was on his feet in an instant and helping me to a place where I could sit down.

"You really shouldn't be touching me, considering how Gods awful sick I am." I commented grumpily as I was set down on the bench of the table in the corner.

Vincent ignored me, very characteristic of him when he was doing a favor for someone and would take no criticizing. "Has she any special significance?" He asked, shifting back to more pressing matters and sitting down across from me.

"I don't know." I replied and raked my fingers through my hair.

He nodded in understanding. "Relax." He intoned calmly. "You're overworking yourself."

"I'm ok." I insisted, and swiftly went to change the subject. "What about you? You must be tired and hungry."

"I'm fine." He said bluntly. There was a short pause. "Though I could use a bath."

I smiled brightly up at him, standing up without thinking. "Of course. I'll go set it up for you."

"That is not necessary. I'll do it." He replied and went to sit me back down.

"Not so fast." I voiced loudly and pushed him back firmly. "You are a guest in my home, and whether you admit it or not, you are just as tired as I am, if not more." I chided. "Besides, you don't know where anything is."

Vincent frowned. Having been through my house a million times over the last 2 years, he probably knew the place better than I did, considering I spent most of my time in the store. In realizing that there was no possible way of winning the argument however, he sat down in silent defeat.

In my house, it was my duty to look after guests, and there would be no changing my mind.

My home was located out back across the creak that ran through the middle of Wutai. One need only exit through the back door, walk over the small arch bridge, and there it was two stories high with sliding doors and lots of windows. I'd always admired Wutaien architecture. It was kind of a dream house.

The Jacuzzi I had installed with our leftover funds from Avalanche was a nice addition to the already comfy atmosphere, and would serve Vincent well tonight. I strode inside, walking exhaustedly down the hall and into the neatly tiled bathroom.

As I watched the water pouring into the tub my thoughts wondered to Cloud. Was he safe? Why hadn't he returned yet? What was it that they'd been searching for? Why was Vincent hiding it? Why all of a sudden these strange things happening?

_Why now?_

I groaned and began rhythmically massaging my temples. Sleep would not be easy to attain tonight when my mind was so absorbed with questions. I'd be twisting and turning the hours away with worry. _Hell, I'm already twisting and turning. _

_He's fine, _I told myself over and over as I stared into space, watching the hypnotizing motions of the water. There was no way they could beat Cloud. He was the greatest swordsman alive. He'd easily take them on, right?

We made another promise... We were going to start new lives soon, when I had enough artifacts to start a real business. How could he go off and die on me like this? _I need him here. _

It wasn't right to blame him, but during such times of heightened distress it was hard not to. I'm sure he wouldn't have died by choice, if in fact he'd died at all, which I strenuously refused to believe. It seemed wrong that after all that anxious waiting and struggling with emotions, that we should finally understand the bond between us, only to be torn apart.

My eyes widened as I remembered I was filling the tub and I quickly turned it off, noticing that it was coming perilously close to being too full. I pushed aside my anxieties for the time being, and sought out a towel and wash cloth..

When everything was set I headed back to the shop, making sure to grab another box of tissues on my way. _I'll definitely need them._

I returned to the room of antiques and discovered Vincent sitting at the oak table in the corner engrossed in the book that the woman had been looking at before he had arrived. I set aside my 'snot control' and went to tell him his bath was ready.

Surprisingly enough, he did not look up or even appear to notice my approach as he studied the page. That was odd. Vincent's ears were very acute and always on the alert. What was so intriguing that he was too immersed to notice my arrival?

"Vincent?" I said, a bit louder than necessary from where I stood now directly behind him.

He looked up sharply, clearly startled by my outburst.

_Ha! I, the great Tifa Lockheart, would go down in history as the first to ever catch Vincent off-guard. _I couldn't help but grin victoriously.

Vincent looked upon my triumphant face with amusement.

"Gotcha." I said, and winked playfully.

"So you have." He smiled faintly.

_Gods was he nice to look at when he smiled. _I held that thought sharply in my grasp for a moment, turning it over in my mind for intense inspection. _Where the hell had that come from?_

"It's r-ready." I stammered stupidly, and reminded myself never to let my thoughts run away with themselves while holding a conversation.

He nodded and headed out back, the tattered edges of his crimson cape chasing after his heels.

My eyes surreptitiously wondered to the opened text. I was beginning to wonder if it hadn't been cursed with some sort of magnetic spell that entrapped anyone who came near it. The temptation to go and find out what was so interesting was almost too strong, but I held back, knowing that it would have to wait. I had to find Yuffie first and tell her what had happened. No doubt we'd be fabricating a rescue mission before the night was over.

I ripped off some tissue from the box, relieved my nose of pending pressure, and walked out the door. To my dismay it was already darkening and _someone _hadn't lit the street lamps yet. In this darkness I could run right into her and not realize who it was.

Logically she should be in her house, but the truth was Yuffie would be wherever I wasn't looking. After all, that was the way of things during a semi-emergency. I'd check though, just to be sure.

There was a light glowing faintly behind one window shade of her house, but as there were two other people living with her, the chances that she would be the one home were slim. It was still kind of nice to hope.

I cleared my throat and lifted my hand to the door. After three knocks my ears picked up the sound of thudding footsteps. I frowned. _Too noisy for it to be Yuffie_ - she liked practicing her stealth when answering the door, and scaring the living crap out of visitors.

As I suspected it was Aya who answered the door. She was an elderly, slightly plump, and very cheerful woman, but ill-fated with the task of teaching Yuffie about Government and Law, as well as the proper educate for a lady who is to become Emperor. Or should it be Empress? _They both sound funny in the same sentence with Yuffie. _

It was a tough job for anyone who had Yuffie as a student. I was astonished at how long Aya had held out so far; almost a year. The last two had escaped during the night and were never seen again, and that was only after a few weeks. Yuffie had proven to be far too worthy an opponent for those amateurs.

"Tifa!" She beamed happily, startling me from my brief reverie. "Feeling better?"

"Not really." I answered feebly. "Have you seen Yuffie recently?"

Aya frowned. "She just went off to look for you, actually. I guess there was some rumor going around about an injured man who stumbled into town earlier and she wanted to ask you about it." She explained. "Do you know who it was?"

"Vincent." I replied.

Aya gasped in horror, one hand clasping her chest. "Oh dear, Is he alright? Does he need healing? Because I-"

"He's fine, but Cloud didn't come back with him." I cut in quickly.

The old woman shook her head distressfully. "That young man is nothing but trouble. Gods know what he's gotten himself into." She let out a worried sigh. "Well, you better go find Yuffie. No doubt the two of you'll be conniving some rescue plan that neither I nor Godo will approve of by night's end."

I blushed embarrassedly, grasping feebly for something to say.

The laugh lines that graced her face creased into a smile. "Go on. I'll explain to her father when we discover the three of you missing in the morning."

_What a wonderful person she is_. "I'd hug you if I wasn't sick, you know." I said happily.

"I know." Aya answered, patting me on the cheek.

"Thank you."

"Take care of Yuffie." She added sternly.

"I will." I affirmed

With that I left and made my way back to the shop, which was no doubt where Yuffie would be by now. Either that or she'd gone out back to my house and barged into the bathroom, expecting to find me. What a surprise she'd be in for if that were to happen.

After scanning the area as best I could in search of my young friend, I stepped inside the shop. There was no sign of her being here, but I did notice that there was some blood marking the carpet where Vincent had lain earlier. I'd have to clean that up while I waited for her arrival.

As I scrubbed away at the stain a short while later, I began to wonder if perhaps Yuffie had run in during Vincent's bath and had gotten shot in the process. Vincent could be rather trigger happy at times. It would have been heard of course, eliminating the absurd possibility, but a lot of weird things had occurred today. _You never know.._.

Without warning the door swung open violently and only my fast reflexes saved me from being knocked out cold. Yuffie nearly ran me over in her state of what appeared to be absolute panic. Instead she hurled herself into the air to avoid tripping over me, norrowly missing my head.

"Tifa!" She yelped in surprise and rolled to her feet, her onyx black ponytail bobbing behind her. "What are you doing on the floor?"

"Cleaning up blood stains." I exasperated, still recovering from the shock of having nearly lost my head.

Her eyes widened. "Oh my gawd!"

"Vincent is fine, Yuffie." I imparted calmly.

She relaxed at the news and exhaled loudly. "So it _was_ him. What about Spike?"

I stood up, bucket in hand, and felt my shoulders slump. "I don't think I've gotten the whole story from Vincent yet, but according to him they got separated when they encountered trouble with some other people; competitors it seems."

"Competitors?" Yuffie exclaimed, flabbergasted. "Since when did they have trouble with competitors?"

"That's what I'm wondering." I replied, pondering. "Like I said, I don't believe Vincent told me everything."

"Well, where is he now? I'll make that emaciated vamp boy tell me what happened." Yuffie growled, punching her hand with force.

My response was an expression of horrified shock. "Emaciated vamp boy?" I repeated, scowling deeply. "What's gotten you so riled up?"

Yuffie's shoulders slumped forward loosely and she hung her head. "Sorry, I just…I'm just worried, that's all."

"Well yeah, me too, but isn't that a bit extreme?" I suggested.

She wrinkled her nose thoughtfully. "I guess so." She drawled. "So where is he then?"

"He's taking a bath. I'm sure he'll be out soon. Once he's done we'll get the whole story, and then we'll decide what our next move is." I clarified.

Yuffie nodded in approval. "Ok." She glanced at the floor idly, "Need any help?"

"No, I'm finished here." I went to dump the bloody water in the sink, leaving Yuffie behind. I was coughing when I came back.

Yuffie looked up at me from the table, the sound no doubt drawing her attention. "Man, you sound like crap."

"Thank you Yuffie." I said flatly. "I feel a lot worse."

"Are you sure you're up to a rescue mission?" She asked deviously.

I shot her a devastating glare. "Of course I'm up to it!"

She grinned. "Heh, just making sure."

"I'll test my physical condition by chasing your scrawny ass through Wutai if I have to." I shot back irritably.

"You're on." She announced.

I instantly saw the error in my words, but was saved by Vincent's timely entrance onto the scene.

_Thank you, _I thought, relieved, and stole a smug glance in Yuffie's direction. She returned with a scowl. Then her attention abruptly averted to Vincent.

"Vinny!" She cried happily. Her expression hardened like stone almost immediately. "So, where's Cloud?"

Vincent eyed her warily. "I don't know his exact location." He replied. "Let's sit down and I will explain."

We situated ourselves around the table, the old book leering at us from its resting place in the center, and my safety box of tissues close by incase of an emergency. One small happy family we were...or not. Yuffie was fidgeting around like she had ants in her pants, and Vincent was, for the first time in my knowing him, struggling not to fall asleep where he sat.

"Well? Out with it!" Yuffie demanded impatiently.

That jerked his attention.

Vincent leaned forward, gazing down at the book briefly, and then to me. "There was a page in this book that Cloud had hand copied onto a map before giving to you, Tifa. That map led to an artifact, said to belong to a Greek God of War, Ares. It was one of the few maps in this book whose landscapes and names closely matched that of our world." He smirked dryly. "Cloud fancied he'd get his hands on it for you."

_Oh no._

An agonizing groan escaped my lipsas I tried to casually yank a tissue from the box and nearly flung the entire thing across the room instead. I sheepishly caught the box and placed it back on the table. Then I went about honking on my tissue quietly, hoping not to attract too much attention.

"You mean you guys actually went looking for it!" Yuffie shrieked in disbelief. "It's not even real! Don't you know the definition of the word 'myth'!"

Vincent flinched slightly at the deafening pitch of her voice, his eyes narrowing dangerously. "Yes, I know what a myth is."

She lurched to her feet, fingers pulling at her hair as her cheeks reddened in anger. "I can't believe this!" Pivoting sharply on her heel with a glare that could put flames to wood, Yuffie's eyes halted on Vincent. "_Why _did you go along with it? None of this would've happened if you would just have, I dunno, told him he was insane? You're supposed to have good judgement and crap."

Yuffie was on the verge of a breakdown and was overstepping the unspoken boundery, and Vincent was starting to lose his composer because of it. Which left me in the middle and feeling quite helpless to stop them. Something had to be done though. Someone had to intervene before this became a battle zone, and seeing as there was no one else in the room to do it that left only me to come to the rescue.

Suddenly I felt very small an insignificant.

_Here goes nothing..._

Within a split second I'd placed myself between Yuffie and Vincent, directly in the firing line of their menacing stares. It took every bit of my resolve not to retreat. "Calm down Yuffie." I said sharply. "And Vincent, stop glaring. You're burning holes in my head."

To my ultimate amazement both assented to my requests without argument, though Yuffie did linger a while before she eventually returned to the bench. Vincent was skillfully avoiding any eye contact with Yuffie and appeared quite poised. He now gazed calmly in my direction, waiting for his cue to continue.

"Alright, no more interrupting now. Go on and tell us the rest, Vincent." I encouraged steadily.

Vincent paused briefly and then began with the rest of the story. "The map lead us to the Achnabi desert on the eastern continent. It's a weeks ride to the center where many of the old ruins of cities reside."

"The middle of the desert?" I enunciated skeptically. "But that's practically suicide! Hundreds have died trying to cross that thing."

His eyes narrowed disapprovingly and I embarrassedly shut my mouth.

_Yeah Tifa, no interrupting, remember_?

"While indeed dangerous, it's also a very popular place for adventurers because of its vast unknowns and supposedly hidden treasures burried in the ancient sands. People have managed to set up safe havens where water, food and rest can be had along the way, making the trek easier for the more casual travelers." He continued, "But yes, many have died there."

Yuffie snorted loudly, her head propped lazily on her folded arms as she leaned on the table.

"It became obvious early in our journey that someone else was following the same route we were, something that bothered me immensely. When we finally crossed paths, my suspicions intensified. The man in lead of the large group of explorers, called Marcus, so happened to be the same one we'd met on our way to retrieve this very book. Though it was never brought to attention, it was clear to both Cloud and myself that he also was after the spear. What we didn't know was how badly he wanted to get it." His voice carried off into the air and silence emerged.

"What happened after that?" Yuffie pressed eagerly.

A barely audible sigh left Vincent's parted lips. "Marcus insisted we spend the night in his camp. Cloud accepted, despite my disapproval. During the night one of Marcus' men tried his hand at theft and snuck into our tent, looking for the map most likely, and unaware that I rarely sleep." Vincent seemed rather satisfied with himself as he said it. "He made the mistake of drawing a blade, and I shot him, alerting the entire camp unfortunately. By that time Cloud was awake and in a colossal panic. We managed to find our two chocobo's amidst the mass of confusion, but they were right on our heels as we fled the camp."

Vincent took a breath and exhaled loudly, his eyes suddenly distant.

"Marcus and the few men he brought with him caught us in little time. The animals they rode were far faster than our chocobos and better adapted to the desert than our native birds. Darkness was our only ally. Because Cloud's animal was the quickest and with the most stamina I chose to stay behind and give him as much time to escape as possible. I was able to snipe the three men that accompanied Marcus before they reached me, but Marcus had cast a shield spell that prevented me from harming him." He stopped again, a shadow falling across his eyes."By the time I finally escaped he'd already wounded me quite severely."

Both Yuffie and I were listening intently now, each of us hanging onto every word, our breath held. Then I was overcome by more hellacious coughing that seemed to go on forever. It did end eventually, but I was left feeling distinctly like regurgitated hairballs. My chest hurt, my head throbbed, and my throat was on fire.

"Are you ok, Tif?" Yuffie asked worriedly. "You don't sound so hot. Maybe you shou-"

"I'm perfectly fine." I interrupted.

Yuffie was watching me with doubtful eyes. She immediately turned pleadingly to Vincent for support. Thus began their truce, and my misery.

"I agree. You should rest Tifa." Vincent announced his unwanted opinion.

"I told you I'm fine." I re-iterated stiffly. "Besides, we have a long journey to prepare for."

"We'll handle it." Yuffie insisted.

Vincent crossed his arms defiantly. "You are in no condition to travel and we're going to need to make good time. You may…slow us down."

My jaw literally dropped to the table. Wisps of smoke furled from my ears. "Unbelievable!" I fumed, staring angrily in Vincent's direction. "You should know by now that something as insignificant as a cold won't stop me from helping my friends. I'll just follow after you…without anyone to help me if I do suddenly fall a helpless victim to this illness. Then you'll _really _feel bad."

He was glaring at me now with a deepening scowl. "That would be extremely foolish." He answered heatedly. "I can't let you come to harm. Cloud would have my head for it, and I promised him that you'd stay out of this."

I scoffed at his response._ That little bastard… _"Well, we made a promise too." I shot back icily.

The room fell eerily silent. They were both looking at me as if I'd just claimed to have seen Sephiroth outside the window. It almost made me laugh, seeing the shocked expressions on their faces. Even Vincent appeared to be in a mild stupor.

_What's the deal? It's not like I said we're getting married or something..._

Yuffie walked by in a flustered haste, jarring me from my thoughts as she veered, narrowly avoiding a full head on collision and just slightly caught my shoulder with hers before vanishing outside.

I sought out Vincent's stare questioningly, but he too seemed bewildered by Yuffie's behavior. What had gotten into her? She'd been acting strange ever since Vincent had returned.

I moved to follow, but was suddenly grabbed from behind. "Let her go. She'll come back when she's ready." There was something in Vincent's eyes when I looked back at him, a speculative expression that was grasping at a possible explanation to Yuffie's reaction, that convinced me to comply to his wishes. It was the kind of look that made you wonder if he was veiling his suspicions to prevent some disaster.

What had he suspected that he feared my discovery of? "Vincent?" I called out, as he had yet to release me of his hold. "I'm not going anywhere." I chuckled, blushing slightly.

He stiffened in realization and immediately let go. "Forgive me." He mumbled almost incoherently and returned to the table where the book sat. "Come here."

I did so curiously. "What is it?" I asked.

Vincent was studying the pages again. "Look." He pointed to the page number.

The first page was opened to 304, but the following read 307. I gawked at it. "Maybe it's been missing all along." I suggested.

His meaningful stare convinced me otherwise. "That is the page Cloud had copied. It holds the directions to the temple."

I silently cursed, and began pacing wildly back and forth. Things just got from bad to worse. "Wait." I stopped suddenly in the midst of a revelation.

Vincent waited expectantly.

"That woman." I began darkly. "She came in asking to see the book and…and I let her look at it." I groaned inwardly.

_That was real smart._ _How the hell was I supposed to know though? Nobody tells me anything!_

"She must have taken it when you weren't looking." Vincent proposed.

"When she sent me off to get water." I murmured quietly. "It was all a trick." So why then did she help Vincent? Surely she wasn't all bad? She didn't seem so anyway, but looks could easily be deceiving.

"This doesn't bode well." Vincent stated gravely, and swept a lock of hair from his eyes.

Yuffie burst through the door an instant later, clearly shaken. "You guys better come see this."

* * *

**Author's Rant**: Mwahahaha! And so the first chapter comes to an end and the entire story is made perfectly obvious. Ok, maybe not… You know me (I think), I love plot twists. Everything has to be so complicated. I'd just like everyone to know that I was really sick when I started this, hence Tifa suffering the same fate. So, uh, I hope this gets some reviews because if it doesn't I may go into permanent hiding , but don't review it because of that, review it because it's good – if it's good. 

I hope you all enjoyed it! More chapters are on the way, (unless it's so bad you can't bear to read it, haha).


	2. Chapter 2: A New Acquaintance

**2. A New Acquaintance**

**_Disclaimer: _**I do not , nor do I claim, to own any of FF7's characters, plot, and settings. And I'm definitely not making money off of it either.

* * *

"What is it?" Vincent demanded. 

Yuffie's lips stiffened in a grim smile. "I dunno, but it looks pretty bad." There was something foreboding in her eyes that sent shivers up my spine.

"So, what's up?" I asked cheerfully, hoping to break some of the ice that was accumulating in the room.

No such luck...

"There are two guys dead on the outskirts of the village. The third one is all dazed and just sitting there. Don't know what's up with him, but he doesn't react to anything. It's like he's petrified, but it's not any kind of petrifacation spell _I've _seen before. None of them are familiar, and they're obviously not from around here from the looks of 'em." She explained. "You probably should take a look, you know."

Vincent's eyes narrowed darkly. "Very well, let's go."

"This way." Yuffie called over her shoulder as she vanished into the night.

I hastily snatched a jacket from the coat rack and followed after her with Vincent right behind me. The night air was chilly and seeped through the thing fabric of the jacket, tickling my skin. It was fresh to breath though and helped to cleanse my sinuses.

Up ahead I could see the glowing of torches at the entrance. It seemed that Yuffie had not alerted anyone else yet for all was quiet as we approached the scene. On the ground lay two bodies in a pool of mingling blood, each a victim to the fatal wound of a blade.

I coughed into my sleeve and looked away as my stomach churned uncomfortably. Normally I wouldn't be so strongly affected by the smell, but my head was stuffy enough as it was. Breathing such foul air only made it worse.

Vincent continued passed me to where the younger looking of the two dead men lay, and knelt down beside him. His claw gauntlet gently grasped the man's jaw and tilted the head from side to side whilst he inspected. He stood up abruptly, eyes downcast on the pale face. "I know this man."

"You do?" Yuffie asked in surprise and skipped up beside him to take a look herself. "Who is he?"

"He was one of Marcus' men." Vincent replied.. "No doubt sent to ensure my death and maintain the secrecy of his operation."

"This just keeps getting more complicated by the minute." I exasperated loudly.

Vincent remained expressionless, but his mind was restlessly mulling. "It seems so." His keen eyes landed sharply on an upright figure just beyond where we stood. Until now I'd not noticed the stranger. I followed behind, sneaking a peek around Vincent's shoulder as we neared him.

The man rested on his knees garbed in forest green robes and cloak, and appeared to be in some sort of trance. His hood was pulled back, exposing his sharp facial features and bronze colored skin. Shoulder length, dark brown hair escaped the folds of his crookedly wrapped green bandana, and fell unkemptly about his high cheekbone face, several locks obscuring his forehead. On each ear there were three golden earrings, the bottom one being the largest and shrinking in size up to the third, and he had a small, pointed goatee. The torchlight reflectedan eerie emptiness in his light brown eyes.

Had it not been for the rise and fall of his chest, one may have mistaken him for an eloquently carved statue.

Yuffie sprang up beside him and waved her hand frantically before his unmoving eyes. She looked up at us from where she was leaning over him. "See?" She gestured. "He's awake looking and he's breathing, but he's comatose or something."

I walked out from behind Vincent's shadow and stooped down beside the unresponsive stranger. "That's odd." I remarked. "I guess all we can do is wait for him to come to."

"Is he carrying a sword?" Vincent asked.

I cautiously lifted his cloak and indeed, there gleaming at his waist was the hilt of a saber. "Yes."

"Is there blood on it?" Vincent inquired.

"How should I know?" I replied, shrugging. "It's in its scabbard."

Vincent nudged me aside and wrenched the sword out. It was spotless. A well-made sword from the looks of it too, and very beautiful. There were letters carved onto the elegantly curved blade.

I stood up to get a closer look. "Do you know what it says?"

"I've never seen writing like this." Vincent muttered quietly, absorbed in thought.

Meanwhile Yuffie occupied herself with attempting to wake the stranger up. "Yoohoo, snap out of it!" She shouted.

"Yuffie, I don't think that's going to-" As I turned at her, I froze in mid speech. The man's head had risen without warning and life had flooded back to his eyes.

"Ya filthy bastard!" He yelped and bolted to his feet.

Yuffie recoiled in surprise, incidentally catching her foot on a traitorous rock and somersaulting into the bushes.

The stranger paid no notice to her and seemed more intent on finding who ever it was that'd been so labeled 'Ya filthy bastard'. Eventually he came to the realization that whoever it was he sought was no longer here. He rubbed his head tiredly and eyed each of us with a befuddled raised brow. "Who in Hade's hell are you?" His gaze halted on the sword in Vincent's hand, eyes narrowing. "And what are you doing with my sword?"

Vincent remained poised and calm. "Checking it for blood."

"Blood?" The man appeared completely baffled. He glanced passed us then and spotted the two dead on the ground. Realization hit and his hands flew up in defense. "Now wait just one second, that's not my handiwork." He insisted sternly.

"It doesn't appear so." Vincent agreed stoically and handed over the man's sword. "What is your name?"

"Marsellis." He snatched the weapon from Vincent's hand, keeping a suspicious eye on him. "'Course I didn't do it. _She's _the one who did it, and then she had the audacity to steal away with my Goddamn map."

Vincent and I exchanged looks of worry. Yuffie just looked between us in confusion, having not been present when Vincent mentioned the missing map.

This sounded all too familiar. I had the sinking feeling that it was my map he was ranting about.

"A women you say?" Vincent pressed.

"What did she look like?" I queried anxiously.

Marsellis stuffed his saber in its rightful place and proceeded to check the rest of his belongings for anything that may be missing. "Long braid of dark, ash blonde hair, wore lots of black…pretty." He added with a mischievous grin. "Good with a sword too." He blinked, flushing suddenly. "Err, not as good as me of course, heh."

_That has to be her_, I thought. So what made her kill these men? It wasn't that I minded particularly that they were dead since they were most likely after Vincent, but I was curious as to what business she had with them. _Something tells me this is all tied in together somehow._

"So, what happened?" Yuffie asked. "I mean, she didn't just freak out and kill them for kicks, did she?"

He shrugged. "I doubt it. She didn't appear to be after them, and they weren't after her. At least, not until they saw her face anyway. That's when they got all excited and attacked."

_I wonder what sort of accent that is? _It was faint, as Marsellis spoke english very well, but obviously there.

Vincent crossed his arms and turned his head away, taking another glimpse at the deceased. "Most likely they recognized her as a potential danger and attempted to get rid of her."

"That'd be my guess." The other man agreed.

"And where do you fit into all this?" I questioned cautiously.

"Pardon?" Marsellis echoed. He frowned slightly. "I seem to recall going over this once already. She's got my map and what little is left of my pride, both of which I'd like to have back. I came onto the scene after these poor bastards met their end."

My eyes narrowed dangerously. "Are you sure it was _your _map?"

He recoiled nervously, as if to put more distance between us. "Hey now, no need to get violent." He maintained calmly. "What do ya mean?

"I mean someone, a women who happens to match the description you gave us, came into my shop and stole a page from an ancient book. It was a map." I answered. "Would that be the same map you're after?"

He grinned quirkily. "Could be."

Yuffie was looking back and forth between us, her face twisting in confusion. "Wait a second, what map? Did I miss somethin'?"

"And why do you want it?" Vincent inquired coldly, ignoring Yuffie for the time being.

Marsellis seem to stair at him with an utterly disbelieving look. "To get what's at the end of it of course. Why the hell else would I want it?" He huffed impatiently.

Vincent scowled at the insult, but chose to disregard it. "You are not one of Marcus' men then?"

Marsellis' expression changed, turning dark and grim. A solemn twitch of his eye implied that he at least knew the name, and didn't seem all that happy about it. "I'm on my own, mate."

"Hello!" Yuffie shouted, waving her arms frantically to grab some attention. "Is anyone going to tell me what's going on?"

Again Vincent dismissed her insistent pestering and proceeded to study the man before him with interest, while I mouthed a silent 'shut up' inYuffie's direction and she retaliated with a furious glare.

"Very well." Vincent paused for a moment. "We're also after the map. A friend of ours is lost in the desert, searching for the Spear, and we must find him before Marcus does." He paused, adding ominously, "if he hasn't already."

Marsellis nodded solemnly. "I'll help you find the map _and_ your friend, if you help me get the spear."

I stole a skeptical sidelong glance at Vincent. Was he really going to trust this man? It wasn't like Vincent to do that, but surprisingly enough it did seem as if he was seriously considering accepting the offer. In fact, watching the two men as each held the other's gaze without blinking, it was almost as if they were some how communicating through mind alone.

Vincent came to a temporary decision. "I will have to talk it over with my comrades." He signaled to Yuffie and myself to step aside for a moment, and so we did, leaving Marsellis alone with two corpses for company.

Yuffie was on the verge of imploding when we vanished behind some crates. "Well it's about time. Are you crazy!" She whispered sharply. "And what's this map everyone's talking about?"

Vincent held up his hand, indicating that she should shut it or face the consequences, and she abided. "The map is the original that Cloud copied to use on his search for the Spear. It was supposed to have been in the book I showed to you earlier. However, it seems someone has taken it."

"Oh." Yuffie frowned. "And what about this Marsellis guy? Ya don't really intend to let him come along, do you?"

Vincent looked at me. "What is your opinion?"

My lips parted in surprise, fumbling for an answer that was not there. "I-I don't know." I stammered, frustrated. "It certainly wouldn't hurt to have another person helping us out though. After all, there is only the three of us against a legion of men. We could use the help."

Yuffie crossed her arms defiantly and looked away. "He's too squirrelly. I don't trust him."

"And we didn't trust you either." Vincent reminded her coolly.

She whirled around angrily and prepared to make a fiery retort, but not a word came out. After a few deep breaths she loosened up. "Point taken." She muttered and turned away from us, head tilted slightly to the side so as to still be apart of the debate. "But why is it you're so quick to trust him, Vinny? It's not like you."

Vincent was struggling in search for the right words to express his inner thoughts while holding back the urge to throttle herfor the ridiculous nickname she insisted on using. "There is something about this man," He began, "that makes me believe we should have him on our side. That's all I can say."

Strangely enough, I had that same feeling too, though it was only vague. Marsellis had an aura about him…it was strong, determined, and a bit mysterious, but not necessarily in a bad way. Vincent saw it too, no doubt more than I did, and while Yuffie was taking the cautious approach I knew that she must have had that same feeling.

"Maybe you're right." Yuffie admitted.

"Then it's settled." Vincent affirmed.

We immerged from our shadowy abode to confront Marsellis, who was currently fiddling with a pouch at his waist. He looked up expectedly. "Come to a decision?"

"We accept." Vincent replied curtly.

Marsellis broke into a wide grin. "Excellent. Names?"

"Tifa Lockheart."

"The great ninja, Yuffie Kisaragi." Yuffie boasted proudly.

"Vincent Valentine."

Marsellis held out a courteous hand to Vincent to seal the partnership, only it was his left.

Vincent wavered, eyeing the gesture with particular dislike. Gradually he lifted the metallic claw and grasped the man's hand in a firm shake.

Marsellis didn't even flinch at the pain in being crushed by a metal claw. He did seem to be relieved to have his hand back though. "That's an interesting set up you got." He commented hesitantly. "Wasn't deliberate though, was it?"

"It wasn't."

"You know, it might be a good idea to get rid of these bodies." Yuffei pointed out idly. "This really isn't Wutai's problem anyway, so we might as well get 'em out of dad's hair before he finds out."

Vincent gave a nod of approval.

"If you don't mind, " I spoke up, muffling a cough. "I'd like to go inside."

"Go ahead." Vincent replied. "We'll meet back at your house."

Marsellis' eyes shifted nervously and he rubbed his stomach. "I'm a bit hungry. I don't suppose you could direct me to some food, could you?"

"Follow me." I ordered and headed back for home. He came up beside me, head bowed towards the ground and partially hidden behind the folds of his cloak, as he had apparently put his hood up.

He was the first to break the awkward silence. "What do you want it for?"

"Want what?" I asked, momentarily confused.

"The spear." He continued. "You do want it, don't you?"

"Oh that." I smiled briefly. "I do collect artifacts, and I admit it would be a nice addition to my collection, but I'm more worried about my friend's safety now. He was the one who decided to embark on this ridiculous adventure, and _without_ telling me. Now he's gotten himself into a mess and we've got to get him out of it."

Marsellis glimpsed at me from behind the shadows of his cloak, a tiny sparkle in his eye. "It's dangerous business meddling with the Gods." He warned. "But only if your intentions are wicked, which I gather yours are not."

I peered up at him curiously. "Why do you want it?"

He chuckled lightly. "Oh, I don't know. I'm in it for the adventure I guess."

"Yeah right." I retorted.

"What? You don't believe me?" He winked playfully.

It wasn't my intention, but I blushed just the same, and from then on avoided looking at his annoyingly attractive face at all costs. He was too much of a charmer for his own good.

Relief came when I finally reached home and was greeted by a gust of warm air as I pushed open the door. "Come on in."

Marsellis stepped inside and scanned the walls intently. "By Zeus' beard!" He gasped. "This is amazing." He removed his cloak and set it on the counter, his gaze literally glued to the rows of display cases.

I noticed then that he was wearing a monk's robe of some kind, to be more specific. It seemed designed for battle.The bottom edge came down no lower than his knees and rather than a woven cord he wore a black leather belt which carried his possessions - a sword, dagger, water flask, and several pouches. His boots were black, knee high and laced up the front. They looked to be made of black suede leather.

"Oh, it's not that spectacular really." I ascertained humbly. "I'm hoping that someday I might be able to build it into a museum." As I turned passed the counter, something caught my attention and I stopped. I glanced back over my shoulder and there sat a lonely glass bottle on the counter, no more than 3 inches high. I knew it had not been there before.

I wondered back to the counter and picked the item up to investigate. Then I noticed the note sitting beside it. My brow furrowed in puzzlement. Lifting the delicate parchment from the table, I read its contents carefully.

_'Take this. It's my last bottle, but it'll do you more good than it will me. You'll need to be in top condition for what lies ahead.'_

Centuries seemed to pass in a window of time that was really only a minute long. The paper slipped from my fingers and fluttered to the floor, but I was no longer paying any attention to it. Again I looked at the bottle. There was no label.

"What's this?"

I whirled around, and let out a cry of surprise, having not realized that during my brief reverie Marsellis had come up beside me. A sigh of respite escaped my lips. "Don't do that!"

His eyes widened momentarily. "A thousand pardons lass, I didn't realize my presence was unknown. It was starting to weird me out though, with the silence and all. I said your name three times at least and you gave no response."

"You called me?" I asked, startled. I had no recollection of hearing anything.

"Several times." He corrected.

After a moments pause I replied, "Oh. I must've been in a daze. Sorry."

"What's the bottle?" He asked curiously, dismissing my apology.

_That's what I'm wondering._ "I'm not sure. Someone left it. I think it might even have been our map thief."

"Ah-ha, she sneaks in while you're away, but why?" He reflected in a mock tone of mystery, taking on the detective approach, though he lacked any real seriousness.

"Supposedly it's for my cold, though I'm a bit suspicious." I uttered. "Why would she go to the trouble to sneak in here just to give me this?"

Marsellis gestured to the bottle. "CanI have a look?"

"Knock yourself out." I answered and handed it to him.

He unscrewed the cap and took a cautious sniff of the innards, then another less timid one. A grunt of approval followed. "I'd know a scentless poison if I smelt it, and this isn't one. That's a good, safe herbal brew." He grinned, obviously aware of the contradiction in his statement.

Well, it's nice to half a second opinion, but I wasn't so sure I could trust him either. I studied his eyes, searching for any hint of deception. "You'd swear it?" If I could get cured, I'd be grateful, but I wasn't about to chug some foreign liquid down just because a man I'd known for no more than 10 minutes said it was ok.

"On my life I would." He said and without hesitation dribbled some of its contents into his own mouth. His face contorted in disgust, but he managed to swallow it down. A long breath of alleviation drew out from his lips and he shuddered. "Only medicine could taste that bad."

I was still gaping at him when he placed the bottle in my hand and momentarily disappeared behind the bookcase.

"On the off chance that I do keel over, I'd recommend you not be taking a swig of it yourself." He advised as he perused the bookshelves, every once in a while pulling a one out to examine.

"I'll keep that in mind." I said dryly. I carefully slipped the bottle into my jacket pocket, and started down the hall towards the back door. "I'll be back in a minute. I better not find anything missing when I return!"

"Would I do something like that?" He asked in an all too innocent tone.

Maybe leaving him alone with all of my possessions wasn't such a good idea. _Definitely not,_ I thought, and spun on my heel back towards the shop. "Actually, I have a much better idea. You can come with me."

"I was only joking." He protested, frowning.

"Are you hungry or not?" I asked, crossing my arms expectantly.

"Oh right, food! Lead the way." He encouraged eagerly.

It took longer than it should have to get to my house. He insisted on being intrigued by every lily pad and blade of grass that lay between here and where we were going. I was beginning to wonder if he'd been living in a hole his entire life and had never seen the outside world.

"Goldfish!" He beamed. "Haven't seen one of those in centuries."

I stopped and confronted him. "What _have_ you seen?"

"Butterflies." He answered flatly. "Lots of them."

"Butterflies?" I echoed in bewilderment.

"Practical joke." He muttered gloomily.

My short burst of laughter tapered off into a nasty hacking noise. "You're kind of strange, you know that?"

"Well, I should be honored then. Most normal people are boring anyway." He concluded cheerfully. "But do try to bare with me here, I haven't done this sort of thing in a long time."

I pushed open the door and bid him enter. "Than what have you been doing? You only look to be 30 or 35 years old. You act as if you've been living in a cage your hole life."

He cleared his throat nervously and scratched the back of his neck. "Looks can be deceiving lass. Let's just say I've been up in the clouds." Again he winked. Such a harmless gesture, but extremely effective.

"I'm not so sure you ever left." I mumbled under my breath as the door closed behind us. There was a strong scent of lilac in the house, a most powerful and intoxicating perfume. It was also a lovely flower, and by far my favorite.

"Nice house." Marsellis commented.

"Thank you." I answered. "What would you like to eat?'

"Whatever fits your fancy." He replied as he admired a painting on the wall. "So long as it isn't sushi. Don't really want to go into what happened last time I ate sushi."

_Neither do I._

The outside chill had yet to leave my bones and I was yearning for something hot, like soup. "Would chicken soup be ok? It's left over from yesterday." _The Universeal cure for disease. _

"Sounds good to me." He called from the hall where he'd moved onto the next picture. It was one of Marlene's drawings, and apparently far more intriguing then the professional piece he'd just been observing with an obvious lack of interest.

I followed him closely with my eyes as he explored the confines of the house, and eventually vanished around a corner. As long as I could hear his footsteps, I was content.

The there was a loud crash from the hall.

"What was that?" I cried, flinching at the distinct sound of shattering glass.

"N-nothing!" Marsellis hollered back with a definite quiver in his voice. "Everything is perfectly fine!"

"That'd didn't sound like 'Nothing' to me." I drawled.

His head poked into view the next instant, a nervous blush in his cheeks. "It wasn't a very nice looking lamp to begin with."

I groaned inwardly, placing one frustrated hand on my hip while the other was braced against the counter top. "What lamp did you break?"

Marsellis' gaze shifted uncertainly. "I'm afraid your chocobo lamp has met an untimely end." He admitted, feigning sadness.

"How!" I gasped, staring at him. "It's on the ceiling!"

He scowled, rubbing his forehead defensively. "Hit me square in the face. Kind of painful, actually. I'm lucky the glass didn't shred me into confetti."

I continued to gape at him, debating whether or not I should reprimand or pity him . At some point I recovered, though it was hard to refrain from laughing. "You ran into it?" I repeated, slightly amused.

"Uh, yes."

A giggle rose from the back of my throat. "Are you alright?"

"Well, apart from my wounded pride, yes." He answered, eyes narrowing. "Oh wait, nevermind. I lost that earlier today."

"How tall are you?" I inquired curiously.

"6'0."

"Vincent never ran into it before." I articulated lightly.

"That's because he probably know's its there." Marsellis pointed out politely. "It comes upon you rather abruptly - right around the corner. An unsuspecting victim has no chance."

"I see." I smiled, stirring the pot methodically. "Well, I guess I'll have to forgive you then."

Marsellis breathed with ease and casually walked up behind me. He then proceeded to hover over my shoulder. "Smells good." He praised. His brow raised in a speculative manner as he stole one last glance at the pot and its contents. Then he nodded his approval and left.

There was something extremely odd about that man.

I sat down on a nearby stool and busied myself with thoughts of tomorrow. Would I even be fit to go? There was still the bottle in my pocket. A possible remedy, or perhaps a deadly poison. Marsellis hadn't died yet though, so I was dimly hopeful.

A distant sound carried on the wind like a soft whistle, jostling my thoughts as it surrounded me in an eerie sort of beauty. It was not a sharp whistle like the wind usually made. The sound was airy and hollow, and almost soothing. I wandered out of the kitchen, entranced by the melody, and into living room.

Marsellis was leaning against his hands on the window sill, gazing longingly into the darkness. His head turned upon my arrival. "Do you hear it?"

"Yeah." I answered. "What is it?"

He shrugged. "Indian panpipes is my guess."

"It's very beautiful." I murmured quietly and came closer to the window. Whoever played was doing a good job of it too.

"A talented musician, that one is." Marsellis observed. "Do you know who it is?"

I shook my head. "I've never heard anyone play those here before. The pan flute really isn't apart of Wutaiin culture."

"Maybe a traveler." Marsellis suggested.

"Maybe. I better go check dinner. I'm sure it's ready by now." I concluded, and left.

The single loud ding of the grandfather clock sounded out the beginning of a new hour. It was 10 o'clock.

Just as I was about to enter the kitchen, the front door swung open and in came Yuffie, her kaki shorts stained with blood and a frown on her face. "Vincent wants to leave in 3 hours." She declared grudgingly. "And I'm sta-a-arving."

"I've warmed up some chicken soup." I told her. "It should be hot enough by now. I'm going to get ready. It should only take me half an hour or so. And don't eat all of it!"

"Sure thing." Yuffie assured me with a mischievous grin that betrayed her true intentions. I'd be lucky if there was anything left when I returned. The girl could put away food like no other.

My head was throbbing when I reached the top of the stairs, and I was starting to feel dizzy. _This wouldn't do, _I thought miserably. I reached in my pocket and felt out the smooth surface of the glass vial. My eyes closed in temptation and I took in a deep breath.

_Was this really a good idea?_

Somehow I convinced myself that this was the best course of action. I trusted the mysterious stranger, though I don't know why. It was instinctive.

I clenched my teeth in determination, twisted off the cap and poured the remaining contents into my mouth. Every bit of willpower I had was needed to force down the bitter tasting fluid. It gave one a burning sensation in their throat, as if it were aflame (_must be garlic in it_). I'd never tasted anything quite so vile, but it did seem to make me feel better, especially when the burning stopped.

My spirits lifted and I dove into the endless abyss that was my closet. I found my gloves first, fully equipped, having not been touched since the final battle with Sephiroth, and I had a pair of new boots that needed some breaking in. There would be no skirt this time around. I learned my lesson during Avalanche and had no intention of making the same mistake again. This time I'd go with some simple highly flexible red and black kickboxing pants.

Little more than 20 minutes passed and I was ready to tackle the wilderness. I'd need something slightly warmer for my upper body though. My black tank top just wouldn't do in the colder parts of the world, and the jacket I wore was a bit flimsy and not at all effective for maneuverability. I grabbed my black fleece pullover from the bedpost, putting the jacket there in its place, and departed, taking one final glimpse of my room before leaving it behind.

Oddly enough, I was happy to go.

I bounded down the stairs cheerfully, and found Yuffie and Marsellis submerged in conversation at the table, their bowls empty. "Hello." I greeted them brightly. "I'm ready to go. How about you?"

"Not really." Yuffie mumbled, her head propped up in her cupped hands. "I could sleep for 12 hours."

Marsellis stiffened and put a hand to his stomach. From his throat emitted a ghastly gurgling sound. "Damn." He wheezed. "There didn't happen to be a list of side effects with that bottle, did there?"

My skin went cold, and I paled. "No…why?"

"I feel a…disturbance."

"Will you be ok?" I drew out nervously, taking a trembling step forward.

He cringed. "More or less."

Yuffie sat up straight. "What's the matter with you? You're not going to throw up are you?"

"A wee bit of indigestion I think." He assured us painfully. "Not to worry, if anything it'll be coming out the other end."

Her face turned livid in revulsion. "Gross! Haven't you ever heard the phrase 'too much information'?"

_Just so long as he wasn't dying_, I thought. All medicines had side effects, right? It was nothing serious, certainly not poison. _Definitely_ not poison.

With great effort he straitened up and forced a reassuring smile. "I'll be fine, lass. Technically you're not supposed to take medication when you're not sick anyway. That's probably all it is."

I was still unconvinced, but he hadn't died yet and, anyone who had experienced bad indigestion knew that it could be very, very painful. It was true too that taking medication when you had no ailments could cause ailments. However, I had reason to be nervous, considering I'd just devoured the last of the bottle only a few minutes ago and could very well be on the verge of death.

"Why'd ya take it if you weren't sick?" Yuffie asked.

"Short, but complicated story." He said through clenched teeth. "Rather not talk about it at the moment."

Yuffie appeared as if she might have been slightly concerned, but shrugged it off and averted her attention to me. "You probably should put your hair up, you know?"

"Yes, but how should I do it?" I wondered aloud while holding it up questioningly. I'd been thinking about it for some time now. During Avalanche I wore it in a loose ponytail, but occasionally it got in the way. "Maybe I should braid it or something."

"It's hair." Marsellis drawled, eyes rolling as he stated the obvious. "Who cares?"

We shot him two barbed glares of warning.

Marsellis reared his head skyward, an expression of sardonic defeat on his face. "Gods, forgive me for obtruding on such sacred topics of the female conversation. I don't know what I was thinking." He trailed off with a long groan.

Yuffie shook her head in disgust. "Men. I don't even wanna know what's happened to your hair."

He flinched and clamped his hand over his heart, as if having received a physical blow. "That was harsh and uncalled for."

"It would be if you actually bothered to clean it." She muttered.

"What do you know about my hair?" He retorted defensively.

She fronted him, an amused smirk on her face. "Have you looked in the mirror recently?"

"Quite it you two." I murmured, still contemplating the hair situation with deep interest. I must admit, I was feeling a lot better all of a sudden. Then realization surfaced unexpectedly. "Where's Vincent anyway?"

"Burying those two dead dudes and getting things for the journey." Yuffie answered. "You know, ammo and all that good stuff."

"Weren't you going to help?" I inquired.

"I helped drag them and dig the holes. He's doing the burying." She stated and studied her clothes. "Crap, I need to change into something else."

"Yeah, you might want to." I agreed. She was a unkempt mess of blood and dirt.

Yuffe got to her feet and yawned tiredly. "I'm gonna go sneak into my room. Hopefully I'll be back soon." She bounded off, taking a left rather than a right, no doubt to go out the window – something she loved doing simply because it drove me insane.

Marsellis let out a soft 'ahem'. "Well, as much as I like sitting here in excruciating pain, we've got roughly 3 hours before we go and I'd much rather spend those hours in a more relaxed position. You wouldn't mind if I crashed out on your delightful couch would you?"

"Just so long as you don't die on it." I admonished dryly.

He bowed. "Of course not. To die on a lady's couch would be indecent."

I smirked. This was looking to be one hell of an adventure, and it had hardly started.

**

* * *

Author's Notes: **Geeze that took me forever. I had terrible writer's block. You've all probably given up on me by now it's taken me so long. I'm sorry! Please forgive me! I'm feeling a lot better now though, so it shouldn't take quite so long to get chapters out. Hopefully this one reaches your satisfaction. Oh, and while this chapter may seem to hint Tifa/Marsellis, I assure you that is not the case. 

Good? Bad? Revolting? Not worth the dirt on your shoes? Let me know! Hopefully it was worth your time, .


	3. Chapter 3: Inner Demons

**3. Inner Demons_  
_**

****

**_Disclaimer: _**I still don't own FF7.

Whisper, whisper - (I'm still here, hehe)

* * *

**  
**

Tap. Tap. Tap.

The rain beat relentlessly upon the window as I idly watched the rivers of water trickle down the surface of the glass. It had only started a few minutes ago, but was picking up pace dramatically. This would make things a little more interesting for the journey ahead. A long, tiresome walk with little rest and a monsoon above our heads.

_Just like old times._

A stifled sigh was all I could muster in response to the dreariness foreseen. The room was cast in shadow, the lights having been turned off for the two exhausted bodies decorating my furniture. Marsellis lay neatly upon the couch, hands clasped over his chest while Yuffie was sprawled out over the recliner, her limbs extended in every direction. It was a wonder she could be comfortable that way, but I had come to realize over the past years that she had an astounding ability to sleep under whatever conditions available, so long as she was tired enough. A rare, but useful gift that I envied her for.

Even more so now, for I could not catch a wink despite having desperately tried. Vincent's continuing absence was making me more anxious by the minute too. It wasn't uncommon for him to vanish for long periods of time without a word, but now was not the time to be pulling that stunt on me. Especially considering that he was being tracked by spies and who knows what else.

I stood up abruptly, raking a frustrated hand through my hair as I paced anxiously back and forth. Once again the mysterious and illusive gunslinger had put me into a panic. He was quite efficient when it came to pulling my strings actually. If only he knew just how much these little escapades tormented me.

Finally, I couldn't take it anymore. Wherever he was I would have to find him, or at list try, if I was ever to be put at ease. It was either that or lose my mind waiting, and I had done enough of that for the last hour and a half. Waiting was not at all my style besides. In fact, I down right detested it.

It didn't take much to make up my mind. I hastily scribbled out a note for Yuffie to find should she wake up (highly unlikely) and discover me absent. If I was lucky, I'd only be gone for 10 minutes or so. Vincent couldn't have gone too far. _He better not have._..

On my way out the door I grabbed a long water-resistant coat, and then entered the miserable outside. Rain thundered on the ground, in my ears, and against my head. I hugged my body fiercely against the bitter cold air as I stumbled through puddles and slipped on wet grass. It wasn't long before the wetness had soaked through my boots and into my socks; a very disturbing development.

Just where I thought I was going is beyond me. I was mostly wondering around in circles around town, peaking into the shadows in search of a familiar pair of glowing red eyes. More likely Vincent was cooped up in a tree somewhere, brooding to himself or planning out our journey. There were a lot of trees on the outskirts of Wutai. A lot of trees, a lot of darkness, and a lot of rain. In town there were at least some lamp lights around so that I wasn't completely blind, but not out where I would most likely find him.

I slumped back against the railing of a bridge and watched as water dripped from the overhanging edge of my hood, the drops occasionally catching my nose on their descent. Despite the jacket I'd managed to get wet underneath anyway and my hair was clinging to the sides of my face, every last strand soaked. I guessed to have spent at least 20 minutes trying to find him, and in that time I had managed to yield nothing but my own exhaustion.

"This is miserable." I grumbled and shifted my weight from one foot to the other.

There was no way of knowing where Vincent was. He could be anywhere, and obviously he didn't want to be found, considering I had covered all the territory that encompassed the town two times over. All the territory except for the woods that is, which I would doubtlessly get lost in dare I enter that dark abyss. Vincent had a rare gift of night vision. Unfortunately I was skipped when they were giving out rare gifts, and so I reluctantly admitted my defeat.

With a heavy sigh I pushed away from the guard rail and trudged back towards home. _He'll come back_, I told myself briskly. Vincent could take care of himself better than anyone else.

That should have been a comfort, but even as I tried convincing myself that there was no possible way the enemy had got their hands on him, something in the back of my mind issued a doubt. Curse my instincts anyway.

I shook my head at that, refusing to even consider that he was in danger. He was just behaving as Vincent always did. This wasn't the first time I'd attempted to track him down after he'd gone off on his own, and it wasn't the first time I'd failed either. Come to think of it, I hadn't succeeded yet.

The door to my home opened with ease and a gust of warm air surged forward from inside, engulfing me. I shrugged off my jacket in relief. My clothes were damp and chilly, but I didn't have the energy to consider changing them. Instead I collapsed on a chair by the window in the living room to proceed waiting. I caught the time and relaxed a little, allowing my eyelids to droop.

Vincent had an hour to get back and retrieve us. Only when that hour was up would I call out the cavalry.

My body gave a harsh tremble and I sat up. Nearby, folded on the back of the couch where Marsellis slept, was a blanket that I confiscated for my own. I relished in the warmth as I tucked it around me as I sat back down on my chair. The cold search had exhausted me more than I expected it would, and I found myself succumbing to sleepiness for the first time. It wasn't long before I'd dozed off.

_

* * *

__Wake up now, Tifa._

I awoke with a startled jerk. Something was wrong, but I wasn't conscious enough just yet to understand what. Words of warning echoed in my head. Where they'd come from I couldn't recall, or what they meant for that matter.

The room was very quiet and dark, just as it had been before I fell asleep. Yuffie had rolled over onto her side and Marsellis was as still as stone, having not moved an inch from his original position. He was breathing evenly, indicating that he had not died in his sleep.

Hair scattered in front of my eyes, obstructing my vision, and I promptly pushed it aside. I squinted in mild confusion as to where this strange feeling of dread was coming from. Only when I glanced up to check the time did I realize what had woken me so abruptly. The shock nearly put me off my seat and on the floor.

It was 2:00 a.m., an hour later than when we were supposed to have left.

Every muscle in my body tensed and I bolted upright from the chair. Panic seized hold of me, but all I could manage was to stand there and tremble in confusion. The initial shock had yet to wear off, but I could hear the truth reverberating in my head.

Vincent wasn't here. _He should've been here,_ I thought desperately, but he wasn't. That meant that something or someone was keeping him. What could possibly have happened? And what was I supposed to do now? I was never good when thrust into the leadership role. _I never know what to do._

I groaned inwardly and clasped my head in my trembling hands. "Yuffie!" I called out loudly. When there was no response I hastened to her side and gave her a rough shake. "Get up."

She stirred with a long drawn out groan, and one eye opened a crack. "What?" She mumbled, slapping sluggishly at my hands.

"We've got a problem." I stated severely.

"Gawd, what is it now?" She grumbled, apparently having not caught the urgency in my voice. "Did someone catch Vincent burying dead guys, or what?"

"Oh no, it's much worse than that." I concluded quickly. "He's gone."

"Huh?"

"It's 2:00 a.m Yuffie!" I shouted impatiently.

I jumped back to avoid a collision as she sprang up from the chair with sudden vigor. "Shit!" She exclaimed, wide eyed. "What do ya mean Vincent's gone?"

"I mean that he never came back!" I conveyed frantically. "We should've left an hour ago."

It took a moment for the news to settle in with her, but it did eventually. She nodded slowly, her lips parting. "Can I faint now?"

"Please don't." I pleaded.

There was a rustling over by the couch followed by, "How's a God supposed to get any sleep 'round here with all that racket?"

Yuffie and I spun around at Marsellis' outburst. "Vincent is gone." We spoke in unison.

His brows furrowed confusedly. "Say what?" Marsellis looked around the room inquisitively, one eye squinted more than the other. He flinched violently at the time on the clock and stood up abruptly. "Woah, were not supposed to still be here."

"Good job, Einstein!" Yuffie snapped at him. "Tell us something we don't know."

"It's raining." He commented with a frown.

"What?" She asked confusedly.

He gestured towards the window. "It's raining. I bet you didn't know that."

Yuffie groaned inwardly. "You are really, _really,_ annoying. You're more annoying that Cait Sith!"

He rolled his eyes. "You're not too shabby yourself when it comes to being annoying." He answered. "What's happened anyway? I thought you guys were on top of things."

"Vincent is the organizer. He's the one on top of things." Yuffie responded in dismay "We just do what he tells us."

"Obviously there's been a change of plans." Marsellis responded. "Seeing how he doesn't appear to be here."

I clenched my fists and took a deep, calming breath. "Alright you two, let's just calm down, ok? Vincent is gone and it's up to us to find him. Which means we need to stop acting like headless chickens and make a plan."

"Headless chickens?" Marsellis snorted.

If frowned, groaning. "So it was a bad analogy, that's not the point." I snapped. "Now, we'll start by heading for the west coast. That's where Vincent had intended for us to go in the first place I think. We need to cross the ocean regardless if we want to help Cloud, and the West cost is where all the ship ports are. That means anyone who needs to get to the eastern continent will be going there as well."

"How does this help with the Vincent situation?" Yuffie cut in. "I thought we were gonna save his butt first. And how do we know he's even alive?"

The blood drained from my face at the very mentioning of that possibility. I discarded it without a second thought. "He is alive. It's a demon thing." I said firmly. It was true, killing Vincent was no easy endeavor. "And we're going to find him. Whoever is responsible for his disappearance is without a doubt connected to Marcus in some way. They will be heading the same direction we are to cross the ocean. Heading west is our best chance of running into Vincent, or at least a clue as to where he might be."

"Woah there, lass," Marsellis interrupted. "Arn't you forgetting something of particular importance?"

I looked at him blankly.

"The map, you fool, the map!" Marsellis exclaimed dismaly. "It's run off with Goldy locks, remember?"

"Oh." I echoed in sudden realization. In the midst of confusion that had followed the discovery of Vincent's absence, I'd completely forgotten about her. He was right. Without the map it would be hopeless trying to find our way through the desert. We wouldn't be much help to Cloud that way. "Well," I began, "I think we'll have just as much chance of running into her as we will Vincent. She needs to cross the ocean too if that map is going to be of any use to her."

Marsellis crossed his arms in contemplation. "How many ship ports are there?"

"Four." Yuffie imparted nonchalantly.

"Four." Marsellis repeated, mildly disturbed. "How will we know which one she'll be at? Or Marcus' men for that matter."

"Only two of them sail the route West of the Island, which is by far the quickest. The other two sail East because they have drop off points on the other continents." I explained.

"Well, that's fine and dandy, but we've still got two possibilities that have the potential to bite us in the ass should we choose the wrong one." Marsellis intimated.

I shook my head. " I don't think so."

Marsellis eyed me queerly, waiting. "Well, out with it."

"One of them is a renown port that caters to civilians. The other one happens to be a secluded, out of the way village that consists of older ships that only a desperate person, or someone operating illegally, would ever consider. Something tells me we'll be more likely to find Marcus' henchmen there. I have no idea where the map will be, but I think it's best that we stick with what we know." I explained.

Marsellis nodded slowly. "It's a decent enough plan."

"Wait a minute." Yuffie blurted out, fronting me with a hard, inquisitive glare. "Just who are you referring to? I thought dad dealt with those guys already."

"Not entirely. More than once Vincent and Cloud enlisted help from that village." I answered. "Godo doesn't have the man power to run down every pirate on the island. They're always around, especially in the remote areas. Vincent and Cloud seemed to trust a few of them though."

"But they're a buncha pirates!" Yuffie proteseted. "They'll probably make us walk the friggin plank."

I shot her a barbed glare and she quieted instantly. "Listen, we've got to do something. This is just a preliminary plan. We'll build off it as we go if we have to, but right now I think it's important that we stick to it and hope that it takes us somewhere. We can't afford to waste anymore time here, that's for sure."

"Right then. Let's move." Marsellis bolted down the hall and out the door so that no one would have the chance to protest.

Yuffie stared after him, her face pale and grim. "This is so not cool."

"It's the boat thing, isn't it?" I guessed and smiled in commiseration.

"You'd hate 'em too if they made you hurl your guts out." She answered moodily. "Why boats anyway? I hate boats."

"And plains too." I added. At the door I stopped. To my dismay the rain was still coming down relentlessly and so I retrieved my rain jacket before heading out. "That kind of makes it difficult when you have to cross the ocean."

"Yeah." She sighed. "Too bad the Highwind is under experimentation. Cid's gonna blow it up one of these days on accident. Although with all the crap he's added to it, I'd probably die if I ever went on it again."

I laughed and stepped out into the rain. A shiver went up my spine. _This is not going to be pleasant_. Yuffie walked beside me, looking somewhat tired and worn. The effects of sleep had not gone and she had a tendency of staggering.

"Yo, we ain't got all day here. Let's see some enthusiasm!" Marsellis called from up ahead. He was springing up and down impatiently, waving us on. It amazed me that he could have this much energy with so little rest, and in the middle of a rainstorm no less. I had a dark premonition of going at an outrageously fast pace under Marsellis' lead.

"What's got him acting so giddy?" Yuffie demanded. "I'm running on fumes over here while he does the mystic happy dance."

* * *

**_Later, on the trail -_**

Through the thick quagmires of mud and over the slippery hills of wet grass, we trudged with heavy hearts. Cold, shivering, and miserable we all were, but we continued on resiliently. Even Marsellis, who'd been so energetic at the start, had lost most of his charm. He'd been quite silent for the last hour or so.

The going got tough in places as the mud was so deep that we could barely move and risked falling in with every step. It was relentless too and never wanted to let go, which caused disasters on more than one occasion.

Eventually we'd find our way out of the mud hole and get to higher ground, but treachery awaited us there too.One was never sure if the ground would remain in contact or suddenly collapse beneath them. This was how it was in Wutai when the rainy season came around; boobytrapped.

The rain did wash off the dirt and muck that accumulated on our clothing when struggling through the filthy portions of the road. It chilled me to the bone too, but the vigorous walking at least kept the feeling in my limbs for the time being.

Luckily for us we'd not had any beast encounters. Not only were we not in shape for a fight, but we couldn't see either. Day light was still a good hour away and the west coast even further.

Other problems pestered us too. Trying to keep track of direction in this darkness was impossible. Yuffie and I felt like the remnants of road kill, and Marsellis was pressing forward at an alarmingly fast pace. We may have well been heading East for all I knew. Wherever we were going, we'd probably die from exhaustion before ever reaching our destination. Either that or hypothermia, which was an ever present thought in my mind, as these were the kinds of conditions in which it occurred most often; Rainy and cold.

An hour or so passed and we slowed to a near crawl. We traveled in a tight bunch now, Marsellis slightly in the lead, me in the middle, and Yuffie to my right. She'd been too tired to even speak, which was extremely unusual.

Marsellis came to a sudden halt and froze. I stopped too and Yuffie followed suit. He was listening for something, but as far as I could hear there was nothing but the rain. Or so it was at first. Eventually I heard what I guessed had caught Marsellis' attention, though I wish I knew just how he heard it that long before I did.

It was a slow, methodic flapping noise, like leathery wings; _big _leathery wings. The sound made you think of a bat, grant a very large bat, but a bat. Whatever it was, it seemed to be heading in our direction and increasingly fast. We were at a disadvantage as the rain tended to mislead us as to what direction the creature was coming from and I couldn't see beyond ten feet in front of us. There was too much fog and too little light.

"Where is it?" Yuffie asked in a hushed voice beside me.

Something glided just over our heads, stirring the hairs on our heads, and aimed for Marsellis. There was a loud thump as two bodies collided, followed by a massive string of curses that emitted from Marsellis' mouth, and then a silencing 'slop'.

Apparently we'd happened upon another mud hole. The creature rolled a ways off and was thrashing around in a thicket of brush.

"Did you see it, Tif?" Yuffie tugged at my sleeve.

"No, but I felt it." I replied and squinted into the darkness for any sign of our attacker. There was only the faint outline of Marsellis wrestling around in the mud like a helpless animal stuck in a tar pit. If the situation had not been so seriousness, I might have burst out laughing "Marsellis?"

A muted "Urgh" was the only response I obtained. Up ahead there was more noise as the creature fought back to its feet. There was a deep throated growl from the darkness, and then silence.

"Bloody hell." Marsellis' voice was muffled by rain and the mass amounts of mud he was three quarters of the way submerged in.

I steadily made my way towards him with Yuffie creeping closely behind me, keeping a steady eye out for the beast incase it returned. "You ok?" I asked.

He scrambled to his feet covered from head to toe in a thick layer of grime. Marsellis glanced over himself in disgust. "More or less." He answered drearily, wiping some gunk off his face with a look of abhorrence. "What a mess."

"Incoming!" Yuffie shouted a warning.

The three of us literally threw ourselves to the ground side by side as a rush wind passed between us and the swift flying creature. I sucked in a sharp breath and pushed myself up from the icy mud after the beast had passed over. It was so very cold.

"I'm getting right tired of this." Marsellis declared testily, and stood up beside me. He offered Yuffie a hand up as she was still climbing up out of it.

"We could use some light." I suggested grimly. "We won't have a chance without it." The creature had been within only inches of us when it had passed and I'd been able to see nothing. It could be the worlds largest bat for all I knew - it certainly sounded like it.

"Did you get a look at it, Yuffie?" Marsellis inquired. "You sounded out the warning, you must've seen something."

"Hell no!" There was a short pause. "Well, besides two very big, glowing, red eyes."

My ears twitched at a familiar sound. Though still quite distant it was closing fast with each wing beat. "He's coming around again."

"Just a minute." Marsellis said. From the little I could see he appeared to be digging around in his item pouches. "There you are." He exclaimed triumphantly and tossed a round, glowing ball into the air. It looked like a star that had been drawn from the sky, and as it hovered above us light grew from it, illuminating the surrounding area.

"That's so cool." Yuffie said enviously. "How'd you do that?"

"No time for that now." Marsellis cut in and unsheathed his sword. "Big batty here is coming around for another pass."

This time when we turned to face the oncoming beast we were able to get a clear look at it. It slowed its flight as it came within the light and hesitated there only a moment before circling back towards the edge of the darkness to land. There he remained still and quiet, a shadow with red eyes.

Those eyes I would recognize anywhere, and I could barely move I was so paralyzed by the shock._ What is he doing?_

"It can't be." I gasped, hands clenching at my sides. "Yuffie, did you see it? Did you - did you see what I saw?"

She stepped up beside me a solemn, pained expression on her face. "Yeah." She replied quietly. "I saw Vinny."

"You saw Chaos." I corrected her crisply.

Marsellis twisted around confusedly. "What's all this about?"

"That was...that was Vincent, in his transformation." I said shakily. "He does it whenever he reaches his limit break, but..."

"But?"

"He's not supposed to go all freaky on us like this." Yuffie finished. "He should've turned back by now."

Chaos lurched forward form his perch and into the light, startling us. He stood several yards away regarding us carefully. His thick torso rose and fell with every breath he took, and there was a terrible frenzied gleam in his eyes.

Marsellis was twitching and fiddling with the handle of his sword under the demon's scrutiny. "Vincent or not, this one's in for a fight." He advised. "We'll need to hurt him if we want to get his attention."

My lip caught between my teeth and I bit down painfully. "Right." I agreed reluctantly with a shallow nod and gave my fingers a firm stretch before getting into battle stance.

"Oh gawd." Yuffie groaned. "I don't know about you , but I'm more worried about him hurting _us_."

Marsellis laughed heartily. "No problem there. I'll have him down in a heart beat."

"Well, somebody's head just inflated like a hot air balloon." She remarked doubtfully, glaring at him in irritation. "You haven't seen Chaos in action."

_He will soon enough,_ I thought grimly.

Chaos rose to the air once more and then, with a screeching battle cry, dove at us. A lump of fear swelled in my throat. I forced it back down just in time to dive aside from the demon's razor sharp talons. As I fell to the muddy ground I could hear the metallic swish of Marsellis' sword and then a terrible crash as a large mass hit the earth in a furious heap.

"Watch out!" Marsellis shouted.

I stumbled to my feet and found myself face to face with the demon. My fast reflexes saved me from what could have been a very ugly encounter, and I successfully knocked Chaos back. I pursued him vigorously, landing blow after blow. Then a Conformer flew over my head, nearly giving me a heart attack, and imbedded itself into the upper portion of Chaos' right wing, where it remained lodged.

"Hey!" Yuffie shouted angily. "That's not supposed to happen."

Chaos let out a tremendous roar of anger and pain that trembled the very ground beneath our feet. It began to quake so violently that I couldn't keep my balance and fell as a result. The others were having trouble too I deduced from the mass amounts of cursing and groaning that I heard from behind me.

With one last shudder, the quaking stopped. From out of nowhere Chaos loomed over me, his hand grasping tightly at my throat and holding me at arm's lenght. He gripped hard, but not quite enough to deprive me of breath, just enough to terrify.

Then I saw something within his blazing eyes that caught my attention. He was studying me with acute interest. Recognition seemed to manifest itself within him and his grip loosened suddenly.

"Say your prayers bat boy!"

I just caught the silver gleam of a sword in time to watch in sink into Chaos' side. A painful groan emitted from the demon's throat and he staggered back in surprise, releasing me as Marsellis wrenched the blade back out. Chaos collapsed at my feet then and hunched forward with one arm bearing his weight while the other grasped at the wound in his side, which was gushing blood at an alarming rate.

Yuffie darted up behind him and retrieved her Conformer. "Jerk." She muttered and bounded beyond his range of attack.

It was obvious that the fight was over though. The demon had suffered too devastating a blow.

I stood up and lunged at Marsellis, grabbing him tightly by the collar of his robe. "Damn you!" I cried. "You said we'd only hurt him."

Marsellis scowled and drew his head back to put more distance between our gazes. "He is only hurt!" He protested. "Besides, you seemed to be in a tight position at the time. What else was I supposed to do?"

"He was backing off!" I shouted angrily.

"Well I'm sorry if things appeared differently from where I was standing." He grumbled sarcastically. "And here I thought I was being helpful."

I let him go with a frustrated groan. "I'm sorry." I apologized. "We better heal him though before it does get serious."

"No." It was barely more the a ragged whisper. "Get awy from me."

I whirled around and stared at Chaos in amazement. "What?" I blurted out incredulously.

He growled through gritted teeth as he glanced at his blood drenched hand. "I said, get away from me!"

My lips quivered as I recognized what must assuredly be Vincent speaking, and I approached him stiffly. "Don't you even dare, Vincent Valentine." I warned him.

"You are in danger." He conveyed darkly. "Chaos will not hesitate to kill."

I sank to my knees in front of him and looked into his eyes solemnly. "I don't think he will." I argued softy. "You have more control over him than you realize. So don't you dare give that as an excuse."

Yuffie walked up beside me and crossed her arms. "No kidding." She agreed. "What kind of crap is this, ditching us because you're Chaos. You've _always_ been Chaos."

"This is different." He answered angrily. "I cannot change back, and there is no guarantee I can keep the hold I have on Chaos now. Something has happened."

"Well then, do explain." Marsellis cut in.

Another ragged breath, constrained and weak, escaped his lips. Blood dribbled down his chin. "I followed someone. Unfortunately, it was into an ambush that I went." He began tiredly. "Somehow, most like incidentally, my attackers cast a spell that altered my body and now prevents me from transforming back."

"You're stuck like that?" Yuffie piped up incredulously.

He nodded wearily, "Yes."

She quietly absorbed the information and then shrugged indifferently. "So?"

I scrambled back to avoid Chaos as he lurched to his feet with a faint wince. Strain was evident in his face. "Don't be a fool." He snarled. "In this form I can do inconceivable amounts of damage to you all. There is no telling what Chaos might do if he gains back control. I can't allow that."

Marsellis frowned. "Wait a minute. Do you realize the extent of the glorious ass kicking we dealt you just a minute ago? I mean-"

"Shut up, Marsellis." I ground evenly. My hands rested firmly on my hips and I gave Vincent a dubious look. "You're running from your fear, Vincent. It isn't like you.." I stated boldly and bit down on my lip nervously. "You'll have to settle with him sooner or later."

_Way to go. Now you'll really piss him off..._

A fire burned in his eyes that was so vibrant I could almost feel it on my skin as he glared back at me. "You know nothing." He muttered, and shook his head softly.

"Well it isn't for lack of trying!" I retorted and felt a warm liquid cascade down my left cheek. My hand lifted in faint surprise at the tear and I looked away, brushing it off quickly. I had not realized until now that I was on the verge of crying. It startled me.

_This is really frightening._

I took a deep, trembling breath, and closed my eyes to force the swelling of emotion away. "You can't do this, Vincent." I whispered and stared off into the darkness. "We need you."

Yuffie walked up to me cautiously and fired a barbed glare over my shoulder at him. "Tifa's right." She said. "Besides, Chaos never hurt us in the past when you changed. Maybe...maybe this was just a side-effect of what happened."

Chaos continued to stare coldly at us. "And you Marsellis?" He inquired stoically. "What is your say in this? Surely you realize what is at stake?"

There was a faint rustling noise and I twisted my head around at him attentively.Marsellis' eyes gleamed brighter than usual and there was an odd sort of power emitting from him that seemed to demand strict attention. "Sure I know the dangers, but if you'd stop moping around, then maybe you could do something about it instead of running away from yourself. She's right and you know it, so don't go biting her head off for saying it straight."

The two exchanged silent words in a meaningful glance at one another. To my amazement Vincent seemed to calm down a bit. "Very well." He said in a deep, vibrating tone that was like silk to the ears. "I will accompany you then, but be aware that Chaos' consciousness may surface at any time. I man not always be...me."

"Now that is more like it." Marsellis beamed happily, his severe expression fading into thin air. "Well then, shall we continue west?"

"If you thought that West was the direction you were heading in, then you are sadly mistaken." Vincent announced and swaggered passed without another look in his direction..

Marsellis stood stupidly, his lips moving without spoken word as his face flushed red. His eyes widened momentarily and he straightened up, chasing afterVincent with a single finger shaking beside his ear. "That was not my fault." He attested and snuck a furtive glance my way as he halted. "After all, it was Tifa who took charge upon your absence."

My jaw dropped in astonishment. "Why you-"

"I would've expected your skills in direction to be better.." Vincent advised coldly before I could finish, and stalked off. "We have no time to waste. Let's go."

"I'm out of practice." Marsellis answered meagerly and frowned with a classic eye brow raise that made him look down right quirky. He wondered back towards where Yuffie and I had begun to follow diligently.

Yuffie stomped his toe as he settled into a slow gait beside her. "Jerk."

"Ow." He cringed and almost fell as he hopped on one leg through the mud.

I shook my head. "You sure are messed up."

He smiled sarcastically. "Why thank you." His attention averted back to Yuffie. "Now what in bloody hell was that for!"

"You stabbed Vinny." She answered curtly.

He rolled his eyes. "He needed a good stabbing." He reasoned. "Besides, he'll be fine."

Amazingly, the body of Chaos _did _apear fine. The wound must've immediatley begun healing.

I studied the shadowy silhouette of the demon worriedly as he walked alone ahead of us. The magic light Marsellis had produced had faded, but as the rain had finally stopped I found myself able to see better even in the dark. Day light would come soon anyway.

"He'll be fine." Marsellis repeated firmly, breaking my train of thought.

I nodded dubiously and stole a furtive glance his way. He was smiling gaily and humming a tune to himself. "What exactly passed between you two back there?" I asked.

Marsellis frowned. "That's strictly confidential I'm afraid."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Yuffie demanded.

"It's beyond your thinking capacity." He replied and dashed away as Yuffie lunged after him.

I laughed as they both were slipping and flailing about wildly in a most amusing display. Yuffie attempted to stop and as result fell with a reosnating splat into the mud.

Marsellis snickered. Unfortunately he'd missed her hand as it grasped a hefty clump of mud and was unprepared when she abruptly flung it towards him. It exploded in his face, the force of the blow knocked him off balance. He slipped to his doom, sputtering and cursing the whole way down.

While they were busy trading blows and laughing at each other's folly I crept up behind Vincent, or Chaos as he was now. My presence was announced long before I got near him though by the slopping noise my each step made. He pretended not to notice.

I bit my lip hard and tasted blood in my mouth. "Ouch." I winced and hastily wiped it away.

"That is a most irritating habit of yours." His voice was without fervor or malice.

My heart sank into my shoes and I considered turning back to rejoin the others whose company was far more appealing. _He must still be angry with me_. "I'm sorry." I said softly and turned to join the others.

"Wait." Vincent commanded and halted. "Don't go."

I hesitated uncertainly. It was strange speaking to him when he was so...impressive. "I don't want to be nuisance. I just...I just wanted to see how you were."

He turned back towards me, his eyes glowing eerily in the dark, and signaled for me to come forward. I complied timidly and carefully avoided his gaze as we started walking again. It was uncomfortable talking to Vincent as Chaos. His body and appearance were so drastically different that it was hard to thinking of him as still being Vincent. _  
_

"I must convey to you the gravety of the situation at hand." He stated calmly. "The men I was confronted by and who are responsible for this are far more dangerous than what Cloud and I faced before."

"What do you mean?" I glanced up at him intently.

"They have power that I'm unfamiliar with." He explained, a shadow falling over his eyes. "It is a kind of magic that I've never seen before, and it requires no materia to wield it."

"That's odd." I remarked thoughtfully. "I've never heard of anything like that before, except for in stories."

"Yes." He concluded. "And there is more about them that intrigues me. They have skin the color of steel, and their eyes glow white, almost lifelessly. No human being has characteristics like that. We may be dealing with a much more powerful foe than we initially thought."

A long silence followed as we each were caught up in the midst of our own thoughts. My mind was already a blur of anxiety before, and now I had a new enemy to brood about. _What have we gotten ourselves into?_

"What do you suppose this means?" I asked. "Are we up against another Sephiroth?"

"It's not out of the question."

Vincent halted sharply without warning. He grew very still as he strained to hear. His head snapped up alertly. "Someone is here."

Somewhere ahead of us a tune was played on what sounded like the pan pipe that Marsellis and I had heard back in Wutai. A mist materialized around us as the notes came to an end, and what vision I had previously was gone. The air felt extremely heavy and seemed to induce sleep.

A shadow approached us and Vincent stepped forward with a growl. The figure spread its hands and spoke a single word, "_Imperium."_, before he had time to react though.

That voice...I had heard it very recently.

**_

* * *

Author's Notes :_** There it is. I'm sorry if there are still a few errors, but it's been so damn long since I've updated that I simply can't wait any longer so I am rushing it a little. Try to bear with me . I hope it wasn't too dreadful - I can't trust myself to judge my own work accurately. I've been under the impression that all of it is bad, but that's just been my mood lately. 

Sigh I'm exhausted and it's nearly 4 in the morning! AGGGHHH!. Ok, anyway, please review if, well, you know how it goes. Bad - don't review. Good - review. Something along those lines.

I hope it was worth your time at least , considering how much effort and time I've put into the damn thing, lol.


	4. Chapter 4: Cupid's Arrows

**4. Cupid's Arrows **

**Disclaimer:** I don't own FF7, but you know, I'm up for hiring you need a script writer, heh. Ok, I'm going now...

Greetings! Yes, I've revived this story from the cold, dark depths of...err, anyway. Here I am once again, begging for forgiveness. Ok, maybe not, but I've finally got a chapter out for this thing. I hope it reaches your expectations, and that someone actually remembers it. It _has _been a while.

Thanks to Cendrillo for giving me the motivation to finally get another chapter done. (I love all you guys for reviewing my work though, so don't go feeling left out)

* * *

**Chapter 4**

The heavy mist that sunk in around us obscured anything beyond the reach of my hand. I started in surprise as Chaos suddenly slumped to his knees beside me, his cold dark eyes staring motionlessly into empty space. He remained in that trance like state even as I tentatively nudged him in the shoulder.

"What the...?" That voice again, clearly befuddled by something. She was somewhere up ahead of us. It was followed by an almost hopeless whine, "This isn't supposed to happen!"

I tried to pinpoint the direction in the which the sound had come, but as I attempted to turn, my body remained paralyzed by an unseen force. Panic was wheedling its way under my skin as the ground seem to fall our from beneath me. Everything was spinning around me like I was caught in the middle of a tornado's eye.

My head lulled back as my body rose upwards weightlessly, and I hovered in clouds that were many shades of ghastly pink. At first I smiled, feeling a tingling sensation in my stomach, like butterflies. I wanted to sink into its warm, comforting embrace, and close my eyes.

_I know this feeling. I must be dreaming...  
_

"Holy crap!"

Yuffie's exclamation snapped me back to reality, if only briefly. I struggled for a moment against the mind numbing bliss that threatened to engulf me. My thoughts entertained ridiculous images of love and happiness, but who was that with me? Everything here seemed so warm and fuzzy.

_Why is everything so pink and frilly? This can't be right. I'm not Aeris. I don't even like pink_.

Another voice broke through the spell, giving me just a little more sanity. It must have been Marsellis. He was mumbling sarcastically to himself, "I'm going to kill her..."

_Kill who?_

My mind felt so scrambled at this point that I could hardly decipher up from down anymore. There _was _no up or down. It was like floating in empty space, only far more pleasant I would imagine. This feeling was almost wonderful, if not for the tiny voice of reason that kept screaming "something is very wrong here!".

_What is going on here? _

I remembered Chaos, or Vincent rather, had been beside me, and I wanted to reach out to him suddenly, but I couldn't find him. The fog was too dense and I was suffocating in the thickening aroma of cinnamon and lavender. It was so intoxicating...

_I could live here forever, _I thought dreamily. But what about my friends?

_**"Now, now, you don't want that."** _Said a sweet and powerfully hypnotizing voice. I wasn't sure if it had come from outside or inside my head. Maybe it was a bit of both.

_**"But we all could use a bit more...love."** _The woman's laughter was like music to the ears as it radiated loudly all around me, and then gradually grew fainter. I felt my heart sinking as the sound was suddenly gone and I was left alone to ponder this strange, yet oddly enticing predicament.

_Why do I have this sudden urge to touch someone? _

I frowned, my mind suddenly focusing, and I started fighting against the bonds of the spell that held me captive. Something moved amidst the mist to my right, but all I could see was a blur. An instant later it was gone and I had to question whether or not I was hallucinating.

Then a sharp object pierced my chest, the momentum jostling my entire body. I looked down apprehensively, and to my horror there stuck a golden arrow from my heart. My brow furrowed in confusion though, as I couldn't feel any pain, nor was there a trace of blood to be seen. There was this strange yearning though, an ache in my chest for something that I could not put a face or name to. It was more psychological than anything else.

The arrow suddenly burst into tiny flecks of golden light that dispersed into the air and dissolved before my widened eyes. Then I was falling through the air and landing painfully upon the soft, moist earth. I wheezed, the wind knocked out of me from the impact, and tried to sit up.

Everything had come back to normal and the mist was entirely gone. There knest Chaos beside me, now blinking rapidly in obvious bewilderment. He lifted one massive hand to his chest, glaring narrowly at the area above his heart as if it had done something to offend him.

I hadn't realized until the flicker of movement from my left that there was someone else nearby. When I turned my head I saw her, sitting back in the grass with her hands planted in the earth behind her, bracing her upper body. She scowled at her boots as she clapped her feet together absentmindedly, eyes distant.

It was the same woman who'd been snooping about my shop the night before. Judging by the blank expression on her face now I doubted she had any reasonable explanation for what had just occurred though. I doubt any of us would. _Speaking of which, where were the others?_

They no where that I could see, and I was too concerned the with the person to my left. She was mute and deeply immersed in though as I stared at her, waiting. The suspended silence was making me crazy. Someone had to say something, I decided, and by the looks of things, it would have to be me.

"I'd like my map back." I said bluntly.

_Nice conversation starter._

She tilted her head at me in mild surprise, frowning slightly. "Oh. That." Her cheeks flushed slightly pink. "I'm sorry. Stealing really isn't a common practice of mine. Only when duty demands it."

"Duty?" I echoed.

"Something like that." The woman mumbled, one hand reaching into the confines of her cloak. After a bit of rummaging about she revealed a fragile rolled up fragment of paper clasped gently in her fingers.

She crawled towards me slowly, her gaze lingering wearily on the impassive figure of Chaos nearby. He seemed to be in his own world and was paying neither of us much notice. I watched the woman curiously as she clumsily dragged herself beside me, taking great care in preserving the condition of the paper at the same time.

"Here." She held it out to me expectantly.

At first I could only gape at it, much like a fish, as I was hardly expecting her to just cough it up. It seemed so outrageous that I immediately began imagining all sorts of possible explanations of why she was doing this. There had to be a catch, obviously.

_Maybe she was hiding a dagger up a sleeve?_

"Go on, take it." The woman insisted.

My forehead wrinkled indecisively. "Why are you giving it back when you stole it in the first place?" I asked plainly. "Doesn't that seem a little... strange?"

She sighed, her shoulders slumping forward in exasperation. "Like I said, only when duty demands, but I can't keep it if you want it back. I was hoping you _wouldn'_t want it."

"But you had to have known something about what was going on. You left me that bottle of cold medicine because you knew we'd end up going somewhere." I countered evenly.

Her eye twitched and she grimaced slightly. "Touche." She admitted. "I didn't have a choice, though, honestly."

"That doesn't explain why you're suddenly giving it back." I retorted.

"There you are! Gawd, we've been looking all over for you!" Yuffie's voice jerked my heart into my throat momentarily and I twisted around at her. I was extremely relieved to see a familiar face though. Even Marsellis, who was clamoring incoherently behind her, was a sight for sore eyes.

Then it happened.

Yuffie halted sharply, glancing between me, the new girl, and Chaos. A second later Marsellis bulldozed into her back accidently, glanced up in surprise, and froze as he met the woman's eyes. Recognition clicked instantaneously.

"You!" He exclaimed, his voice trembling.

I could've almost laughed at the way he was twitching, if it wasn't for the fact that he suddenly went for his sword. Everyone flinched at the metallic ring as the blade slid sharply from its scabbard. Even Yuffie, who was now on the ground, had rolled onto her back, gazing up at him in mild shock.

The woman groaned inwardly and forcefully shoved the rolled up map into my hand. "Take it." She said curtly.

Marsellis glowered, but it seemed to lack the proper venom. "Don't think that's going to save you now, missy." He warned her, shaking a chastising finger in her direction. "You owe me a fair and square fight. I've got to redeem myself you know."

She stood up carefully, smoothing the folds of her mud covered cloak, and looked up at him sadly. "Do we really have time for this? I'd actually like to know what just happened."

He brandished his rapier high, or tried to anyway. Evidently it didn't have quite the effect he'd hoped for, and so his arm eventually fell limply at his side. "Bloody hell." Marsellis muttered, as if it just dawned on him that something out of the ordinary had occurred only moments ago. He spun around sharply, teetering off balance for a moment as he did so, and collapsed to his knees, shouting some of the most obscene curses known to existence. This was followed by loud groaning and moaning noises, which closely resembled that of a dying animal.

Yuffie and I exchanged nervous glances.

"What the hell's the matter with you!" Yuffie exploded.

Marsellis was not paying her any attention though, as he was too preoccupied with whatever had caused him to break down in the first place. He was currently grasping his head and muttering to himself.

Chaos, I noted, was quite attentively watching us. The commotion had no doubt stirred him from his thoughts, and now he was more interested in seeing Marsellis' unraveled state of affairs. In fact, he seemed terribly amused by the whole thing.

_That doesn't look like Vincent._

I planted my hands firmly on my hips, glaring between Marsellis on the ground, and the woman. "I'd like to know what's going on too." I said.

"Well," The stranger began feebly, "First things first I guess. Did everyone get shot with a golden arrow?"

Yuffie sprang up beside me, frowning. "I know I was." She answered irritably, crossing her arms.

"You?" She glanced at me questioningly.

I nodded.

Her gaze drifted hesitantly towards Marsellis' back. "I think it's safe to say he got hit by _something_." She averred. Lastly, she looked at Chaos. "What about him?"

Everyone, with the exception of Marsellis, who was now whimpering, turned towards the silent demon expectantly. He smirked coldly, reclined on his side against one hand. "What _about_ me?"

_Definitely not Vincent._. Chaos had evidently gained control again, but at least he wasn't like before. As in he wasn't stark raving mad at the moment, just annoying.

"Well?" Yuffie prodded. "Didya get shot or not?"

Chaos shrugged, a hint of a scowl on his face, and he muttered in response, "I'm not inclined to tell _you_ anything."

She rolled her eyes, seemingly unsurprised by the lack of cooperation from the demon. "Good luck talking to that guy." Yuffie grumbled. "He's worse than Vinny is."

"Oh shit..." The woman mumbled quietly, her brow furrowed in concentration. Apparently she'd come to a conclusion of some sorts, and not a pleasant one by the sound of it. "Please tell me this isn't what I think it is."

I glanced at her, one brow raised. "What is it?"

"You don't want to know." Marsellis drew out ominously. He walked in between Yuffie and I to stand in the center of the group, looking at everyone in turn gravely.

"Whaddya mean 'We don't want to know'?" Yuffie blurted out impatiently. "_I _want to know!" She expressed clearly, hands on her hips.

He chuckled coldly, biting down on his lower lip as he shook his head in mild disbelief. Marsellis cleared his throat shakily and gave me a helpless look, before glancing down at Chaos, who was glaring at him with utmost hostility. "Any of you familiar with Aphrodite and Cupid?"

"Bloody hell." The woman blurted out unceremoniously, more to herself than anything. She glared at him skeptically. "You can't be serious. _Why?_"

"Because we - they're gods, that's why." Marsellis faltered.

She gave him a suspicious look and her lips parted in question.

"They like to meddle in the lives of mortals to get their _rocks off._" He swiftly cut her off, throwing in a glare for good measure.

_He's acting awful strange, _I thought.

"Woah, hold it right there." Yuffie interrupted. "I'm not getting the drift here. You mind filling me in?"

"Yeah, that would be nice." I agreed dryly.

"Oh come on." Marsellis cried. "You've got to know about Cupid. You know, the ugly fat cherub that goes around shooting people with his 'arrows of love'? It's a Valentine's Day thing."

I nodded slowly, understanding. "I get it." The horror was gradually sinking in now, but I was not yet to a point where I was willing to accept the inevitable truth. It was simply too outrageous to fathom.

Yuffie laughed hysterically. "You've gotta be kidding me!" She shrieked emphatically.

"I wish." He muttered, wincing.

"So, you're saying we've all been hit with Cupid's arrows?" I asked seriously.

"Yep."

I chuckled nervously, glancing around at the many horrified expressions. My gaze halted for a moment on Chaos, as he too seemed somewhat paled by this news. That couldn't be right though..."S-so, how do we know who, uh, falls for who?"

Marsellis smiled grimly. "That's the thing. We _don't _know."

An eerie silence crept into the still air and for a moment all we could do was glance furtively around at each other, each of us harboring the same general thought.

_I hope it's not you._

Yuffie scowled suddenly and broke the silence. "But there's five of us, and technically only two guys, if you count Chaos."

The demon stiffened visibly. "What makes you think I'm taking part in this stupid charade?" He hissed.

"Good point.." Yuffie agreed. "He's a demon after all. It probably doesn't effect him."

"It might affect Vincent though." I pointed out grimly.

"Well, let's pretend it doesn't!" She barked irritably. "That leaves us with an even number, right?"

"And only one guy!" Our nameless acquaintance reminded us darkly. "I for one am as straight as an arrow, but that's just me, and by the gods I'm _not _falling for _you_," She gestured wildly in Marsellis' direction.

Yuffie cringed. "Oh yeah." Her eyes widened momentarily. "Well, I'm not falling for him either!"

The two girls looked at me expectantly and I frowned. "Don't look at me!" I protested. "_I'm _not falling for him."

Marsellis was shaking his head thoughtfully, thoroughly oblivious of the character assassination going on over his head. "There could be someone else for all we know." He said. "Just because Cupid shot us all at once doesn't mean we necessarily have to fall for someone here right now. It depends on who else he gets."

"Oh, well isn't that just peachy." Yuffie exclaimed, throwing her hands into the air. "What if he goes and shoots some 400 pound fat guy?"

He smiled sympathetically. "Unfortunately, I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if he did do something like that. Such is the cruel sense of humor of the Gods."

Her face blanched in horror and she gasped. "N-no way." She shook her head fiercely. "That's SO not happening. I'll-I'll jump off a friggen cliff first."

Marsellis regarded her with mock sadness. "I'm afraid that it works both ways though, kiddo. He falls for you, you fall for him," he shaped a heart with his hands, "Happily ever after."

Yuffie turned green. "I think I'm gonna be sick." She croaked, clutching her stomach reflexively as she spun away from us.

"Is there anyway to reverse it?" I asked, dimly hopeful.

"If there were I wouldn't be standing here right now watching grass grow." Marsellis retorted moodily. "At this point all we can do is wait."

"For what?" The nameless one piped up hesitantly.

"To fall in love." He answered, grimacing at the statement, and sighed. "I can't believe this is happening to me."

"I'll say." I murmured in commiseration.. "Are you _positive _there's no way to reverse it?"

Marsellis lulled his head, shrugging. "If you march up to the Goddess herself, you might have a shot, but even those chances are slim. By the time the opportunity presents itself we'll be too out of our minds to _want _things to be fixed."

"What about Cloud?" Yuffie inquired impatiently. "He's still in trouble."

"We just continue on as if nothing happened." Marsellis explained simply. "There's nothing else we can do."

The nameless one was fidgeting uncomfortably apart from the rest of us. "S-shouldn't we split up or something?"

He whirled around at her, eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Oh no you don't. You're staying with us, missy."

"I don't mind going with you," She said quietly with a faint scowl."but if you call me 'missy' one more time, I can't promise that you'll come out in one piece afterwards, ok?"

Marsellis stroked his chin thoughtfully, eyes twinkling mischeivously. "But it has such a nice ring to it." He persisted.

"In that case, you may lose something more dear to you than your very soul." Her mirthful eyes darted below his equator briefly, and she nodded at his thoroughly shocked expression. "You get the idea."

He bounded away from her, taking refuge behind a disgruntled Chaos, of all people. "Damn, why is it always the psycho who joins the party? Couldn't we've run into someone, I don't know, normal?"

"You're one to talk." I mentioned.

Yuffie snickered. "They deserve each other."

Chaos plucked the squirming Marsellis out from behind him and dropped him in front of him. "This is going to be a nuisance." He muttered. "Let's go."

Everyone looked his way questioningly. It hadn't even occurred to me that Chaos would be coming along, which was another one of her many worries right now.

How was Vincent holding up and was he ever getting back to normal? I certainly couldn't guarantee anything if Chaos went off on his own, and who knows what he'd do in his free time. It seemed almost too good to be true that he would chose to stay.

The thought sent a shiver up my spine and I approached him with a scrutinizing gaze. "So, you're coming with us then?" I asked hesitantly.

The demon rolled his eyes effectively and sneered. "Against _my _better judgement, yes." He grumbled. "If it were up to me, I'd have left you filthy rodents a long time ago, but I don't get much say in the matter."

I crossed my arms, smirking dryly at him. "Oh right, and you can't just choose to leave now either? Aren't you the one in control?"

"Only marginally." Chaos indicated. "Besides, someone has to keep you idiots in line or you'll be off rolling in the hay instead of doing what you're supposed to."

My jaw went slack and I inhaled sharply. There didn't seem to be an insult fitting for him though and my mouth clamped shut abruptly. I frowned, "I don't think it works that way."

"Actually, it depends on what kind of arrows he used." Marsellis remarked drearily, lying on the ground still with his hands behind his head in a reclining position. "It _could _be like that for all we know, but at this point I doubt it. Usually those kinds get right down to business as soon as they hit ya."

"That's comforting." Yuffie grumbled and lashed out with her foot at a large pebble. Incidently it knocked Marsellis upside the head.

"Ouch!" He yelped, springing to his feet instantly. "What did ya do that for?"

Yuffie feigned ignorance. "Huh? You talkin' ta me?"

He scowled, but she maintained her air of innocence with a bright smile."Bloody hell." He rubbed his sore head, and started walking in no particular direction. "Let's just get going."

"Um, names first maybe?"The woman asked. Then she grinned. "Unless you'd rather I use the ones I've fabricated for each of you."

"Please don't." Marsellis replied edgily. "Marsellis is the name."

Her eyes seemed to brighten with mischievous intent."Like Mars?"

The blood drained from his face and he lifted a shaky finger towards her. "Do _not _call me that."

She winced at the rage hinted in his tone. "I was just kidding." She insisted softly. "I'm Jade, by the way."

The rest of the introductions were hastened, as we were hard pressed to move on. Jade, it seemed, had plans already made for a voyage across the sea. It was a smaller boat, she said, but it could easily take all of them across, and the captain was supposed to be one of the best. She would not reveal any further details though, which left us all feeling a bit nervous.

Still, she seemed trust worthy enough.

Chaos was tagging along, as he called it, to make sure us 'kiddies' didn't start getting ideas of steamy rapture in our heads. It sounded so ridiculous the way he said it that I almost laughed, but for that searing glare he fired in my direction as his acute hearing detected the muffled giggle leaping from my throat at the time. That look was enough to stop a dragon in its tracks.

I smiled guiltily at him and he shuddered.

"Don't look at me like that." He uttered sullenly and pulled one of his enormous leather wings around him to block me from view.

"Someone's ornery." Yuffie said, hoisting her weapon onto her shoulder lazily. "So, how long do ya think this is gonna take?" She asked me quietly. "I mean, shouldn't we call Cid or something?"

I frowned. "Cid has a family, Yuffie. We shouldn't drag him into this mess. It'll get him all worked up for nothing."

"Who says we have to tell him the details?" She articulated smoothly. "Just say we need a ride or something."

"How are we supposed to explain Chaos and Jade though?" I countered. "We'll be raising too many questions."

Her lips parted, about to speak, when the ground gave a sudden violent jerk beneath us and cries of alarm flooded the air. A high pitched screech boomed in the distance and the earth trembled harder. I spread my legs wide to steady myself, but I could not for the life of me gain control of my body amidst the shaking.

"What the hell is that?" Jade cried, having fallen into a bog hole when the quake occurred. She looked none too happy about it.

Marsellis was staggering desperately about near her as he too tried to maintain balance. "Oh boy," He said worriedly, "this can't be good." Eventually he made it to Jade's side and, reluctantly, helped her from the mud bog she was swimming in.

Yuffie and I had managed to latch onto each other to keep ourselves upright. My brain was practically vibrating within my skull the shaking was so terrible. Staying on our feet was more of a chore than it should've been.

Chaos had taken to the air and was hovering safely above the ground beyond the chaotic disarray below. He crossed his arms, looking down at us sanctimoniously, and I scowled.

_I hope whatever it is that's doing this smacks you out of the sky like a fly. _

As if on cue, something very large and snake like sprang up from the immense depths of the swamp at our right (_where had that come from?_), and I felt myself regretting that last thought as Chaos was abruptly knocked stupid by one of the creature's several heads. His flailing form plunged into the murky depths of the swamp with a loud splash.

"Vincent!" I cried, momentarily stunned.

_I didn't mean it, I swear! _I thought weakly.

Bubbles disrupted the surface where he had disappeared, but there was no sign of him.

"Holy crap!" Yuffie yelped as she stiffened beside me, and I grudgingly tore my gaze away from where Chaos had been swallowed by the water. "It's gotta be 20 feet tall!"

"What _is _it?" I gasped in horror, now focussing entirely on the creature looming above us.

Its three heads twisted and slithered, watching us intently. Swamp gunk dripped from his moist scales, giving off an awful rotting stench, and slime dripped from hungry bared talons. The serpent wriggled in anticipating, hissing gleefully in anticipation of a meal.

"It's the Hydra." Marsellis replied quickly. "You wouldn't happen to have any fire on you, would ya?"

Yuffie and I glanced at each other apprehensively, then at our weapons. We should've known immediately what we had equipped, but in the heat of the moment, our minds were blank. One doesn't think particularly straight when a 20 foot tall serpent his hovering above you in anticipation of a meal.

"I've got a maxed Fire materia." Yuffie said at last. She looked up at me, "you?"

I scowled deeply. "Nothing."

"One's enough." Marsellis called, his voice heightening on the last syllable.

The Hydra lunged for his position, and he and Jade dove in opposite directions, narrowly avoiding the serpents jaws. They scrambled to their feet, now on opposite sides of the beast.

"What do ya want us to do?" Yuffie hollered uncertainly, fingering her weapon in anticipation.

Marsellis was breathing heavily, his sword held out in front of him as he carefully dodged and countered the Hydra's advances. For some reason the serpent really had it in for him. He called out to Jade, who had her own sword, but looked unsure as to what she was supposed to do with it. "Chop it's heads off!"

Jade looked back at him questioningly. "But won't two more grow back in its place?"

He let out a strangled groan as he rolled away from another close call. Marsellis wiped the mud from his eyes as he got back to his feet, a shallow gash on his left shoulder where the Hydra's teeth had struck him. "Not if you burn it."

"Oh, I get it!" Yuffie announced happily. "Go ahead, I'm ready when you are."

I glanced around helplessly, having nothing useful to do at the moment, and then I remembered Chaos. He still had not surfaced though.

_He'll be fine, _I thought.

I bit down on my lip in frustration, staring around stupidly.

"Hey Tifa, we need some bait." Marsellis called.

I whirled around at him sharply. "What!" I exclaimed. "Why me?"

"Because you're standing around like you need something to do." He retorted and ducked beneath the serpents tail as it swept a few inches above his head.

_That wasn't exactly what I had in mind..._

His face was contorted in obvious panic when he looked up at me again. "We don't have all day!"

"Oh brother." I mumbled and, sparing one last glance back at the cloudy water in hopes of a sign of Chaos, sprang at the Hydra with trembling legs.

It's attention was still focused on Marsellis at the time, so my swift approach went unnoticed until I'd struck the startled creature in the body with a powerful combo. I felt much like a gnat trying to bite a whole into sheer steel. The metal studs on my boots and gloves caused some minor scratches at the most. My blows merely ricocheted off his thick skin.

However feeble my attempts at doing the creature harm, I had successfully drawn its curiosity towards me. That put me at a mild disadvantage as I was standing right beneath it when the three glistening heads all twisted around at me. I had scarcely more than a few seconds to react as they pulled back to strike, but my reflexes were reasonably fast. There was a chance I'd escape with my life, however minimal.

_I love contemplating odds...or not._

I sprinted the left, pushing myself as hard as I could go. There was a loud cry behind me, and a writhing head hit the ground a few feet front of me, showering me with clumps of mud and blood. Yuffie summoned a fire spell from somewhere to my left as I slid to a startled halt to avoid tripping over the ghastly appendage, and I spun to face our query.

It screamed as the stub where the one head had been sizzled and burned, and the earth shook again at its bellowing voice. Then, to everyone's horror, two heads sprung from the burning flesh, fresh and ready for battle.

_So much for that idea._

Marsellis visibly paled, "Not fair!" He shouted and spewed an yet another array of colorful profanities, shaking his fist threateningly at the sky.

One of the heads lunged for him while he was sidetracked by the sudden rage of failure, and if not for Jade's intervening he would have been Hydra lunch meat. She struck a gash across the serpents neck that came dangerously close to cutting its head right off, but she had been deliberate in doing so. With half of it still intact, nothing could grow in its place, but it was also rendered quite useless for the time being.

"Watch out, Marsellis." She said, smiling faintly.

"What do we do now?" I yelled, keeping a close eye on the three heads that were still functioning at full capacity.

The Hydra was staying at a distance though, simply glaring between each of us maliciously.

_Why wasn't it attacking?_

Marsellis answered the question as if I'd spoken it aloud. "It's healing the wounded head." He said. "We need to get out of here."

"But-" I was in the midst of protesting when Chaos himself burst upwards from the swamp waters, eyes aglow with rage at the serpent. "Never mind."

"We really need to get out of here." Marsellis repeated timidly and made a run for it. He called over his shoulder,"Chaos will keep him occupied."

Yuffie grabbed my wrist and dragged me after her. "Don't worry, he's a demon. He can handle it." She assured me.

_Who said I was worried? _

I sighed in defeat and ran after them, glancing back once to make sure that the Hydra was not following. Chaos was indeed keeping it busy. I'd even go as far as to say that Chaos was enjoying himself, flying circles around the disoriented snake while it feebly struck out at him. The demon was far too quick and strong to get caught by the snapping jaws, but he couldn't do much either.

When we entered the canopy of a jungle and they drifted out of sight, I averted my attention to keeping up with the others. They weren't too far ahead of me, but Marsellis was going so fast! I didn't know how long I could keep up a pace like this. It wasn't like I was in shape or anything.

My chest was feeling tight, my sides were burning, and my legs were like jelly after about three miles, but the others showed no sign of stopping yet. According to Marsellis' breathless jabbering, the Hydra could cover the same amount of distance in a third of the time, and so resting was not an option at the moment.

"I don't...remember...that swamp...being there..." Yuffie wheezed beside me a while later.

"I imagine...there are...a lot of things...that weren't here...before." Marsellis managed to answer between breaths. He had slowed considerably and was only just a head of us. Jade was on the other side of Yuffie.

I glanced at him in dawning horror. "Whatdoyoumean?" I didn't have enough air to talk slowly .

"The map..." He began, hurdling a log, "there's an...incantation that...unlocks the spear...it opens a doo-oooor..."

His explanation was cut off as the wet, spongy earth suddenly collapsed beneath him and he went sliding down the muddy hillside, out of sight. Before I had a chance to react at what had happened the ground simply jerked out from under me, and I was suddenly gliding uncontrolably down amidst the mud and water in much the same manner he had just seconds ago. Judging by the cries of alarm from behind me, I guessed that the others must have been caught in the mud slide as well.

My eyes were directed towards the sky as I was skidding down the steep decline on my back. Everything was blurred by the speed of my descent. I tried to remain as still as possible to avoid injuring myself or catching a limb on a tree, as I was eventually under cover of tree tops again. It didn't dawn on me until later when I'd landed in a thoroughly drecnched heap beside Marsellis, half submerged in muddy water, that I'd been screaming almost the entire time.

"Well that...was exciting." I breathed, grinning stupidly.

An instant later Yuffie plummeted into me, shoving my head into the water. Fortunately for me, she moved off of me as soon as she realized who she landed on, and I was able to come back up for air.

"Sorry Tif." She said, giggling.

I coughed, choking as I sat up again. Jade had come down too, right after Yuffie, and was currently untangling herself from Marsellis.

"Well, that was kind of fun." She remarked, smiling.

"It's about friggin time we stopped." Yuffie muttered irritably and threw a glob of mud in Marsellis' direction.

He dodged the attack, only to trip over Jade, and land head first into the water.

"Woah." She groaned in surprise as Marsellis'caused her to topple over onto her side. Her hands caught her though and she uprighted herself quickly, wiping the dirty water from her eyes.

Marsellis came up sputtering and thoroughly infuriated. "Blast it woman, watch out!"

Jade stopped what she was doing abruptly and gawked at him in disbelief. "You're the one who tripped over me." She argued, splashing water at him accusingly. "I was just sitting there minding my own business, thank you."

He made a grunting sound as he stood up slowly, his robes thoroughly soaked and weighing him down considerably. "Sorry." He mumbled and offered her a hand up.

She smirked. "No, don't worry about it."

Yuffie and I exchanged a side long glance, smirking to ourselves. She snickered, leaning towards me mischievously, "So much for not falling for the idiot."

I smiled slightly. "Yeah, but what options are left for us? The 400 pound fat guy, and who else?"

She scowled darkly. "He was kidding."

I nibbled my lip hesitantly. "I'm not so sure..." I trailed off as her eyes narrowed dangerously in my direction. "I'm sure you're right."

"That's more like it." She said and yanked me up out of the water with a surprising amount of force. Yuffie turned towards Marsellis then. "So, you think we lost him?"

I'd have given anything for her not to have said that. It's one of those things that seems to carry doom in its wake, kind of like that phrase, "Well, it can't get any worse.". It always does.

A familiar shriek split the air and I clamped my hands over my ears reflexively. Something crashed into me from behind, knocked me forward. I thought I'd for sure fall back into the water, but instead I was being lifted completely off the ground and carried through the air. On first impulse I was inclined to feel a sense of freedom and breathless awe. _I'm flying!_

I dared a glance at my captor then and choked back a startled cry. Chaos was staring ahead intently, his powerful wings propelling us away from the pool where the Hydra had appeared with one arm clamping me firmly against his chest. The others were shouting urgently amongst one another below.

"Stop." I said urgently, wanting to go back and help. "We've got to help them."

Chaos gave no impression of having heard me, or if he did, he wasn't listening, but he was circling around back towards the battle. My eyes widened momentarily as I saw he was heading straight for the Hydra, and with me in his grasp.

_What's he doing?_

He descended sharply all of a sudden, causing me to yelp in surprise, and he placed me on the ground near where Yuffie was standing stiffly, her conformer poised and ready. He continued towards the Hydra, avoiding one of its sweeping heads, and began buzzing around it, antagonizing the serpent for his own amusement.

Yuffie looked at me anxiously. "What should we do?"

I shrugged helplessly. "I don't know! Marsellis is the only one who seems to know anything, and his plan obviously was a disaster."

"I heard that!" He barked.

"Well it was!" I maintained irritably.

"How was I supposed to know," He glared up at the sky abruptly, as if to accuse someone above of thwarting his plan, "that some filthy bastard had _rigged the fucking rules!_" Marsellis angrily lashed out at the Hydra as it attempted to devour him once again, muttering through clenched teeth. "It worked for Hercules, damn it."

"Well, we're not Hercules, are we!" Yuffie fumed impatiently. "There's gotta be something we can do."

I jumped back, startled, as the Hydra whipped its tail around at us.Yuffie had tucked into a roll to avoid the attack.

She scrambled back to her feet, rapidly going through the materia in her slots as if searching for something specific. "Hey, maybe we can turn it into a frog?" She suggested suddenly, eyes lighting up.

"That's what you came up with!" I shrieked. The heightened emotional tension in the air had evidently caused a momentary break down on my part. "When has frog _ever_ worked on anything but weeds!"

She looked at me contentiously. "As much as I hate to say it," She muttered, "_do you have any better ideas?_"

Chaos crash landed a few yards away just then, wings tangled around his massive form as he sprawled awkwardly in the thick mud. His head lifted slowly, spitting out whatever foreign substance had found its way into his mouth. "_Anything _is better than that."

Yuffie made a face at him. "Fine," She said haughtily, "but you'll all be groveling at my feet when this sucker does the trick."

The demon snorted, and burst into a fit of hysterical laughter.

I blinked in amazement at the scene, temporarily unaware of the Hydra and everything else. Chaos was laughing himself silly. Was that possible?

Yuffie's eyes went ablaze with fury, but she averted her focus on the Hydra instead and prepared the spell. "Just you wait, you pompous windbag." She grinned, "Here goes nothing!"

Everyone did wait, tensed with eager anticipation. Well, with the exception of Chaos that is.

_There's no way this is going to work, _I thought.

**

* * *

**

**Author's Notes:** Mwahaha, they've all been hit by Cupid! It's simply beautiful material to work with. I actually might be able to update this again before, you know, the next year, lol. I hope it was to your satisfaction. I'm actually looking forward to writing more of this, but I'm a little worried I've lost everyone. Oh well, I've read through the first three chapters, and they aren't too bad, so I don't think it would be too much of a painful endeavor to read through them again.

About Jade. I'm not fully happy with her development at the moment. She didn't get a lot of air time in this chapter because she's supposed to be a little shy. I'm hoping that she'll start to perk your interests a little more in later chapters. For me, it's extremely important that an original character be interesting in a story like this. I don't want you guys to be turned off by her, so I hope that she doesn't come across as too mundane.

Anyway, as always, I hope you enjoyed it, and I'll try to update sooner. My life is in minor turmoil right now unfortunately.

Happy days, I've finally updated it!


	5. Chapter 5: Getting Out of Dodge

**Chapter 5:Getting Out of Dodge**

**Disclaimer: **No ownage of Final Fantazy 7, nor have I made zuch claim. But Jade and Marzelliz are mine, zo don't ye go taken 'em. Ok, I'll stop the weird 'z' thing now, heh.

* * *

Yuffie's voice tore through the ensuing chaos, casting the spell. At first, as I stood back with anxiously clenching hands, it didn't seem to be having an effect. The gaseous green cloud grew to an enormous size and seemed to swallow the Hydra whole, obscuring all of its parts from sight. Then it just sat there, frozen in time. 

Something was definitely wrong. My brow wrinkled in confusion as I exchanged a befuddled glance with the unusually quiet ninja. "What's going on?" I asked aloud, looking back again at the writhing shadow behind the smog. The spell acted as if it were being delayed.

"How the crap should I know!" Yuffie responded hotly, shaking her head. "This is fricken weird."

The serpent let out an agonizing shriek that dropped me to my knees and I clamped my hands over my ears in desperation When the sound finally ceased I clumsily got to my feet, glancing about to check on the others. Everyone was keyed in on the beast and cautiously stepping away.

"He seems a bit angry." Marsellis pointed out obviously. "Now might be a good time high tail it out of here."

It happened almost perfectly on cue with his ominous declaration. In a split second that Hydra had brought its long tail around in a massive arc that swept across everyone on the front line, which included myself. The blow landed across my abdomen with paralyzing pain, knocking the wind out of me, and launching me swiftly into the air with great force.

I soared backwards at high velocity, too stunned to react or make any preparation for safe landing, and waited for the inevitable crash into the ground. Only it never came. Powerful arms intercepted me from behind, locking me securely against a solid body, and my landing was well cushioned. The strangled groan of my savior fell against my right ear upon impact, as he was sandwiched between my body and the earth. We rolled out of control together, a tangled mess of limbs and enormous wings.

My eyes were clenched shut when we finally came to a halt. Evidently, I opened them to a blinding flash of light, which was followed in succession by a deafening crack. I rolled away and to the side in a pathetic attempt to defend myself against it, only to find myself in very close quarters with the demon. To be more specific, there was barely a breath's width between our faces.

"Oh my God." I gasped, too shocked to even begin to comprehend to the meaning of this unusual and entirely unexpected turn of events. I was too startled an mesmerized by his haunting stare to even notice what was going on around me right then. "Vincent..." My lips faltered..

_Is it really you, or am I only dreaming? No, it's not you...it can't be.  
_

For in instant I could almost see him behind the menacing smirk of his demon counterpart, but it was fleeting as Chaos suddenly winced in pain. My breath caught in my throat as he rolled over and was bracing himself above my body with hands spread on either side of my head. At first I was mildly alarmed by this startling development, as I didn't know what he was doing or why, but then I noticed his wings flexing behind him methodically and realization clicked in. They had been crushed during the landing and were looking a bit worse for wear. No doubt they needed some stretching.

However, it seemed to be taking him an awful long time to "stretch" his wings, and after a while it was apparent that he had no immediate plans of getting off. Oddly enough, the demon did not look pleased or entertained by this, but rather disturbed and confused. He lowered his head mere inches from mine, looking intently into my face as if to seek an answer that had stubbornly been avoiding him.

I blinked nervously beneath his intense scrutiny and at the smell of his breath, which oddly wasn't near as bad as I expected it to be. In fact, it was almost pleasant. The I began to fidget beneath him even more uncomfortably. "You can get off me now." I mumbled impatiently, as it was obvious that I'd be going nowhere without a little contribution on his part.

Chaos smirked dryly. "No,not yet." He retorted firmly.

I sighed and relaxed, despite the odd predicament we were in and how it undoubtedly appeared to any onlookers. The essence of this creature was strange and alien, and yet at the same time I felt a strange sort of comfort and familiarity in his presence, as I would in Vincent's. That unnerved me more than anything else. Could it be that I was developing a twisted sort of attraction for the demon side of my companion? Or maybe it was both...

"Please...just get off." I asked quietly and turned my head away. "I think we should make sure the others are ok."

"They are fine." He intoned darkly. The demon sighed and looked passed my head at the ground. I could feel hot air against against my cheek with his every exhalation, and the pressure of his body was pushing down against mine. It sent an unruly shiver up my spine that was so powerful that I know he must have felt it too.

He seemed to freeze in place, his gaze catching mine sharply again. "Do you know who I am?" He asked bluntly, his gravely voice fierce and demanding.

I bit my lip and feebly shook my head in response, trying desperately to restrain the hopeless reactions of my body. _This is ridiculous, _I thought, but it was in fact quite serious. Everything about the situation was serious, from the emotional turmoil to the painful reality of it.

He let out a harsh chuckle. "Of course not. _You _think I am only Chaos, the demonic side of Vincent, but Vincent all the same."

"Well, you are, aren't you?" I inquired uncertainly.

Chaos snorted, "Perhaps." He spoke dryly, "Perhaps."

"Oh my gawd!"

Yuffie's sudden outburst was followed closely by yet another, only this time from Marsellis and somewhere along the lines of, "Holy shit." He said it with such a ridiculously exaggerated idiom that I knew he must be doing it on purpose.

Needless to say, it grabbed our attention, and Chaos and I both abruptly broke eye contact to glance at the scene playing out nearby and outside of our own confusing little world.

At first, it didn't seem all that spectacular, although the fact that the Hydra was no where to be seen did qualify as something to be excited about. However, the tone in which the outcries had been delivered had reflected a distinct sensation of horror rather than ecstatic relief. It was then that the source of their shock staggered directly into my line of sight and my jaw went speechlessly slack.

"Vhat in the _hell..._have you done to me?" It was Jade's voice, but with such an abnormal accent that I barely recognized it, and she was having an obvious difficulty speaking at all. She grasped at her throat. "My voize...zomething iz vrong..." Her gaze fell and she sighed gloomily. "Oh dear."

Not that I could blame her, considering the drastic transformation she had taken on in the last minute or so between the spell being cast and now. She still had that beautiful long braid of hair, but there was also a noticeably large fin growing along side it down the center of her back. It was the first of many others jutting out from her forearms and calves, thighs, and another along the center of her head, which was now slightly elongated and wider than previously so as to appear more frog-like.

Her eyes were larger and the pupils flattened. The cloak she had been wearing was nowhere to be seen, probably torn to shreds during the change, much like her boots , which were absolutely trashed though a few scraps still clung to her ankles. She had long webbed toes and fingers that were rounded at the tips, and she was having trouble staying up right. Several sharp and dangerous looking horns had sprang up around her hair line, as well as some behind her shoulders and along her back, like some sort of demon creature. Lastly, and the most predominant of the changes was her skin, which was now a blend of light and dark green hues.

My eyes abruptly averted to Yuffie who was standing rigidly beside a gaping Marsellis. "I-I-I...I didn't mean it!" She wailed and in a frenzied panic jumped behind Marsellis. "I mean really, it was an accident. And I'm sure there's a way out of it." Her eyes shifted uneasily towards me, "Right Tifa?"

I felt a blush rising in my cheeks as all the attention was abruptly directed at me, and I still happened to be pinned beneath the enormous form of Chaos. To my surprise, and relief, he stood up at that very moment, probably to avoid any further embarrassment, and offered me his hand. I grabbed it without hesitation, ignoring the shock that the contact tingling shot through my arm, and awkwardly stepped away from him.

With a nervous clearing of my throat I attempted to address the problem at hand, "Well, we could try a Maiden's Kiss for starters." I suggested. "If that doesn't work, then we'll have to try something else, but I'm sure there must be a way to reverse it."

_I hope..._

"Yeah." Yuffie reiterated weakly. "Right..." She trailed off.

Jade let out a disgruntled sigh. Her anger was gradually subsiding and she averted her attention to something on the ground, which she picked up after a moment. She held it out in her alien like hands, studying it with obvious disappointment. "Damn." She muttered and tossed it aside.

The broken pieces of her pan flute landed a few feet away off my right.

"Well," Marsellis began hesitantly, and I suddenly I had a very bad feeling in my gut that he was about to say something entirely inappropriate. "On the bright side, your name sort of fits now."

Jade wriggled her fingers, as if she were itching to wrap them around his throat, but thought better of it. "I'm not even...going to graze that...vith an anzwer." She muttered and looked back at me. "You are zure... there'z a way to fixz thiz...?"

I felt my shoulders slump as the weight of her hope was suddenly on them and I didn't have the strength to carry it. "I don't know honestly. If you'd become a frog this would be easy to solve, but this case is obviously quite unusual." I explained feebly.

"Hey," Marsellis interrupted. "If anything, the Gods can do it."

"Oh...vonderful." Jade tossed her hands into the air in exasperation, "Ve're putting my fate...in _their _handz. I feel zo much...better now!" She snapped sarcastically, though it was a struggle for her to get it out. With an agonizing groan she slumped into the mud with her head cradled in her webbed hands.

Marsellis frowned deeply at her abrupt rebuttal and strut over to her purposefully. He squatted down in front of her and forced her hands away from her eyes. "Come on, cool your jets, will you?" He urged sternly. "I'm dead serious. You're not going to be stuck like this forever, alright?"

Jade nodded vaguely . "...ok." She mumbled. "I'm zorry ... about that. It'z juzt ... I keep on having thiz vizion of mizz piggy ... zhot in the back by cupid..."

Marsellis chuckled loudly and gave her a firm pat on the shoulder. "Hey. I wouldn't worry about it, chicka. I mean, I'm sure he'll at least make it a Mr. Piggy anyway." He grinned deviously.

That was the last straw. Jade launched herself from the ground with power that most humans could not manage, courtesy of her froggy enhancements, and pinned the flailing Marsellis to the ground. She grinned ecstatically as he squirmed about beneath her.

"Hey!" He squeaked as she throttled him gently, and quite ineffectively, with her webbed fingers. "I was just kidding!" His eyes strayed pleadingly towards us.

I crossed my arms, scowling. "This is no one's mess but yours, you know."

Yuffie was giggling madly not far away, and Chaos was beginning to look impatient. At long last, the demon could take it no longer and reluctantly separated the two. Marsellis limped away, massaging his neck and firing dirty looks over his shoulder as Jade rolled her eyes and let the assault bounce harmlessly off her shield of disinterest.

"I seem to recall," the demon began drearily, "Having a ship to catch."

Jade's brow darted upwards a fraction, "Ve do?"

Chaos leveled her with a narrow, threatening stare. "You said you had that covered."

"Well yez... back vhen I vaz actually _human..._and remotely recognizable." She paused, before adding dourly, "and underzdandable for that matter. Call me crazy...but I doubt...they do buzinezz...vith frog people."

"Good point." Yuffie agreed. "So what do we do now?"

The demon growled under his breath and spun away from the us. "We take one." He retorted, and stalked off into the woods.

I stared after his retreating form, sighing inwardly. "That sure rings a bell, doesn't it?"

"Yeah." Yuffie replied glumly. "Junon Harbor revisited..._again._"

"Well, it's not like we've got much of a choice." I reminded her.

"Then let's go." Marsellis piped in energetically. He was having way to much fun given the present circumstances. "You too, Kermit." He jerked his head at Jade, whom candidly flashed him the bird, and it was a funky looking one at that.

Yuffie made a moaning noise in the back of her throat. "Here we go." She kicked a stick in her furry. "You know, I haven't even got to gloat over my victory earlier. I was really lookin' forward to rubbin' it that dirty demon's face too."

I smiled faintly, briefly wondering what ever became of the Hydra turned frog, before breaking into jog after Chaos. He had already managed to disappear.

The demon was still nowhere in sight as I entered the thicket where I'd last seen him, and that boded no good for us. "Chaos!" I called anxiously as the others crashed through the underbrush behind me. Not even a sound emanated from up ahead, though it would've been hard to hear with all the racket going on behind me.

_Where did he go?_

"That stinkin', no good, maggot infestation of a traitor deserted us." Yuffie cursed angrily.

My heart skipped into my throat as Chaos dropped swiftly to the ground not 3 feet in front of me right then. I exhaled in relief, one hand still held at my chest from the initial shock. "Where were you!" I demanded, though it was more of an effort to hide my fear.

Chaos disregarded the question without even a glance in my direction. "The port town is a mile North West of here. Now move it." With that he walked off once again, but at a slower pace this time so that us stragglers could keep up.

I followed a few yards back from the demon with Yuffie beside me, and Marsellis and Jade were behind us several feet. Curiously enough they seemed to be getting along rather well from what I could tell, at least for now anyway. Jade was having issues with walking and Marsellis was being quite the gentleman, helping her out along the way...I think.

_This can't last long._

It didn't either. He had to open his mouth again. "So, I'm curious. Do you have any unique 'froggy' abilities now?" He asked giddily. "Have a sudden hankering for flies?"

A sharp "splat" resonated from behind us, and I glanced back apprehensively. Marsellis was rubbing his eye painfully and shrinking away from Jade, who was smacking her lips awkwardly, her eyes momentarily crossed in a ridiculous manner.

"Ow. Not me. Flies, woman, flies!" He grumbled irritably while keeping a wary eye on her person. It wasn't too long before he was back to his normal self again. "What kind of range do you suppose you have with that thing anyway?"

"I don't really know." She answered thoughtfully. "Vould you like to find out?"

His eyes widened as he flung up his hands in a display of hastened retreat. "Oh no. No, no, no. You can keep that slimy little thing to yourself. I've experienced enough tongue slapping for one day."

Jade rolled her eyes. "You _are_ the one vho azked."

"I didn't say to hit me with it." Marsellis protested grumpily.

"Vell, that'z not my problem, iz it." She replied evenly. It seemed that she was getting a little better at speaking the more that she did it, though her 's' was still a 'z', and her 'w' a 'v'. "Maybe you zhould have zpezified beforehand."

A muffled grunting noise emanated from behind me, which I gathered must have been Marsellis' deflated response, if it could be considered one at all. Indeed, they were getting along _unusually _well. As in, they weren't bickering or pulling pranks on each other.

I felt the inconspicuous nudge of a pointy elbow in my side a moment later and glanced sideways at Yuffie's suggestively wiggling eyebrows. She leaned in closely to me, keeping one eye on the two walking behind us, blissfully unaware of the espionage going on beneath their noses. "You thinkin' what I'm thinkin'?" She whispered behind the back of her hand.

I nodded uncertainly. _Did I? _For some reason, the fact that I recalled broaching this subject, or a similar one, earlier this morning seemed to imply that, no, I didn't know what she was thinking because why would she be bringing it up again?

Yuffie groaned inwardly. "You know, the maiden kisses the frog and he turns into a prince." She described, pursing her lips for a sorely exaggerated emphasis. "It's where the cure for 'frog' got it's name."

I frowned. "I know that, Yuffie. But what exactly are you getting at?"

She leaned into me again, her eyes darting about suspiciously. "I was just thinkin' that if the Maiden's Kiss doesn't work, which it probably won't because that would be the nice thing to do, we _could _try the old fashioned way." Her mouth curved in a crooked, evil grin.

My gaze darted towards Marsellis surreptitiously, and back at Yuffie again. "No." I stated bluntly, shaking my head. "No way we'll fly that one past them."

"Are you kidding!" Yuffie exclaimed a little too loud. She lowered her voice into an urgent whisper, "They're all over each other! And once the item doesn't work, she'll be gettin' real desperate."

"That's not what I'm concerned about." I pointed out. "It's the part where we convince Marsellis to cooperate that I'm having trouble grasping."

Yuffie grunted. "Ah, give 'em time. Soon enough cupid's little 'arrows of love'-" She made an obsene gesture with her hips at that moment, "will have him groveling at her feet, heh."

I bit my lip absentmindedly as I was instantly reminded of the scene that had transpired back in the clearing between myself and the demon up ahead. My eyes slowly drifted to the back of his head where two enormous, spiraling horns grew.

_What am I doing? I wish Vincent were here instead. _

"Yo, you ok?" Yuffie inquired in the slang speech she'd acquired from hanging around in Barret's company. Her hand was waving rhythmically in front of me and I hadn't noticed it until just now.

I stumbled unexpectedly while groping about for an answer, and only just caught myself from a nasty fall. "Y_-_yeah." I stammered foolishly. _Not._ My head was swimming and my heart rate seemed to have jumped an octave in that small instant where Chaos entered my thoughts. That was _definitely _not ok.

Naturally, Yuffie wasn't all that convinced either, judging by the expression of wry amusement. "S-u-u-re." She drew out for effect. Her gaze shifted towards Chaos idly. "I don't remember him bein' so talkative. Do you?"

"No." I answered, secretly grateful for the change of subject, and curiously studied her question. "Come to think of it, he never talked before at all. Whenever Chaos was around he was in berserk mode before, and as soon as it was over he left."

Yuffie shrugged nonchalantly. "Yeah. I guess now that he's stuck as Chaos, Vincent's the one hiding, huh? So, Chaos kind of has to do some talking. He'll go all nutty on us when he hits his limit break again probably."

"You're probably right." I agreed solemnly. My head lifted at the distinct aroma of salt and the ocean, and I smiled brightly. "We must be getting close." I announced excitedly and chased after Chaos.

When the woods came to an end, we found ourselves on a narrow cliff side path that winded downwards and out of sight around a bend. There was an inlet there that vanished out of sight behind the same shoulder of rock, and far below, gliding along the surface of the calm waters, was a ship. It was the first time in my life that I'd ever seen the real billowing sails and wooden mast. It was far bigger than my imagination had always perceived them.

_That's what we're sailing on? _Yuffie's ashen face seemed to reflect much the same horror that was going through my mind at that very moment.

Nearby Chaos was crouched at the edge of the cliffs staring out towards the skyline with a distant look in his cold, red eyes. The sun had barely reached above the horizon, rendering the air still cool, and it caught only the tips of his wings as he perched. Then, without even a word or slightest hint of warning, the demon launched himself off the stone and into the air. His wings unfurled gracefully and he began a slow, gliding decent towards the water. He pulled up short at the last moment and took a sharp right towards the inlet.

"Where's he think he's goin'?" Marsellis asked curiously.

I shrugged helplessly. "I have no idea."

"Does anybody?" Yuffie snorted. "I don't think Vincent even knows."

"Maybe he'z zcouting,...for a zhip to zteal." Jade suggested. She winced, "Ooo, I hate thiz aczent."

"Don't worry about it." Yuffie assured her. "We'll have you jazzed and ready to kick ass in no time."

I glanced furtively in Yuffie's direction, questioning her certainty, which she simply ignored. _Well, I'm glad someone's confident, because I'm certainly not!_

"You said a Maiden's Kiss might work." Marsellis mentioned. "Why not use one of those?"

"Yeah." I drawled quietly. "It does cure frog. Vincent had all the items however, and he's...not exactly here right now."

"Eh, let's just get going. He'll find us whenever he's done getting his kicks. There's probably an item shop in town anyway." Yuffie decided and commenced to scramble down the precarious path as if she had been a wire walker all her life.

If it hadn't been for my experience in the Nibelheim mountains, I probably would've been a tad frightened at this point. The trail seemed more like one that a goat would make, and they were crazy, which wasn't saying much for me, considering that I was making the same trek.

"I...don't think I can do thiz." Jade said from back on top of the cliff.

I turned carefully and looked over my shoulder at her. Marsellis was incessantly urging her to follow him, and Jade was strenuously refusing.

"Come on. I won't let you fall." He insisted.

Jade shook her head diligently. "No. I'll make uz...both fall." She declared. Curiously, she crept towards the edge to peer over it. "Howv far do you think it iz?"

Marsellis' brow screwed together as he scrutinized the distance. He looked back at her somewhat suspiciously then. "Why do you need to know?"

"Juzt tell me...howv far it iz to the vater.." She repeated impatiently.

"I don't know. Maybe 50 ft." He looked back at me. "That sound about right?"

I nodded.

He was just in the midst of turning back around when she jumped.

I inhaled sharply and cried out, despite knowing that it was way too late to stop her, "Jade!"

She was well beyond Marsellis' reach by the time he reacted, and with an elegant dive, she vanished into the water below.

"What's goin' on?" Yuffie appeared beside me suddenly, staring around in bewilderment. "Where's froggy?"

Marsellis pointed towards the water rather calmly for someone who had just watched a fellow companion leap into the ocean off a 50 foot cliff.

"Holy crap, she jumped!" Yuffie exclaimed.

My breath caught in my throat as a pair of webbed hands, though hard to make out at this distance, surfaced. They were followed shortly by her spiny head. "Go!" She shouted from below. "I vill meet you there."

I stood there for a moment, staring blankly at the swirling waters below as she vanished again, and wondered how on earth I'd gotten dragged into this peculiar mess we were in now. The strangest happenings had been going on ever since we left Wutai, and it felt almost like I were in a completely different Universe from the one I knew. Or maybe our world had been invaded by another. There had to be some way of explaining the weird phenomenon occurring recently.

"So like, what are we waiting for!" Yuffie called in a valley girl tone that made my ears hurt. "Come on! They're gonna beat us to it if we don't get our butts in gear."

"Right." I nodded absentmindedly and stumbled after her with Marsellis close on my heels.

It was narrow walking in a few places along the way, and more than once I found myself reaching out to grasp shrubbery as I scaled a steep cliff. If there wasn't any, I grabbed Marsellis instead, who was non too happy about it usually, but amazingly we all survived the ordeal. The roughest parts were behind us now that we'd gotten around the bend and could see most of the bay below.

The harbor was small, but bustling with activity for its relative size. It fit snugly between to towering sheer rock walls that jutted out into the ocean, creating the small bay where the ships could dock comfortably. Lush vegetation and towering trees grew up amidst a mixture of elegant Wutain architecture and old eastern log dwellings. Up ahead the path began a sharp descent from the rocks into a canopied trail of soft soil that headed off in the direction of the village.

Yuffie had already bounded off, half running and half sliding down the hill that disappeared into the thicket below. I took it at a more leisure pace and settled into an easy jog at the bottom, so as to catch up with the spry young Wutai princess. The path eventually led us into a wide and well-used alley that emptied into the main courtyard, which was rather full of people, most of which didn't look like very amiable fellows.

"You know," Marsellis began, "I'm thinking we should lay low." He suggested and ducked behind a large crate without another word.

I glanced at Yuffie apprehensively, who was pressed against the wall and peaking precariously around the corner ahead of us. She dodged away quickly and joined me behind another crate opposite of Marsellis.

"What's it look like?" I asked.

She didn't look very pleased. "Bunch of dirty, smelly pirates." She spat irritably. "I mean _real,_ swashbuckling pirates."

I gaped at her skeptically as the corners of my mouth twitched into an amused grin. "Swashbuckling?"

"Oh shut up." Yuffie retorted and chanced a look over the crate. She squatted back down after a moment and sat on the ground hopelessly. "They look real mean too."

Marsellis peered around the corner of his crate and made a face. He looked at us abruptly, scowling. "This place has been over-run with Marcus scum." He concluded morosely. "We'd have had a rough time getting through here even if Jade _hadn't _gone all amphibian on us."

"Great. What are we supposed to do now?" Yuffie whined. "We still don't have that stupid item _or _a friggen boat."

"Well," I cleared my throat, "They don't know who we are, so let's go out there and act like were traveling tourists just passing through."

"Oh yeah, like that's gonna fly." Yuffie scoffed. "Traveler tourists that are armed to the gills with weaponry."

"Exactly." I clarified firmly. "Another words, don't mess with us."

Marsellis seemed to contemplate the idea, his head lulling from side to side as he weighed our options. "You know, she might have an idea." He admitted. "I say we go for it."

Yuffie grunted. "Nobody asked you." However, seeing as we were already preparing for departure, Yuffie reluctantly resigned herself to her fate. "Remind me to stock up on tranquilizers if by some miracle we actually make it to an item shop before being chopped into tiny pieces."

"Oh lighten up." I grumbled. "It's not like we haven't been in these kinds of situations before. Come on." I tacked on my best smile and strode smoothly towards the courtyard with the other two in tow.

"Yeah, but we had Spike and his gigantic sword back then." Yuffie murmured irately in my left ear.

The three of us were now walking side by side down the center of the street, catching many a suspicious look from oncoming strangers. It wasn't long before we were the center of attention. People sneered and leered, never nodding in passing, and most of them had a look about them that just shouted "up to no good". These weren't like the pirates I remembered, although I admit I hadn't actually known any. Cloud had talked a lot about them, and he had only good things to say about the ones he met.

So, where _were_ they? Apparently, they'd all gone on vacation or something, because there wasn't a single friendly face in this crowd. At least they seemed apt to keep a distance from us for the time being, which I gathered, judging by our growing popularity and the quiet murmuring going on around us, would not last long.

"Here we go." Marsellis said and gestured quickly to a small log structure off to the right of the street with an Item sign hanging from the eve. It was located beneath a gigantic weeping willow, and there wasn't a living soul near it, not even an ugly pirate. That in itself was a good omen.

Yuffie and I followed after him as he branched off the main road. I lingered behind on the porch for a moment to check for any sign of a trailer, but there appeared to be none. Everyone was ignoring us for the most part, or at least pretending to, now that our entrance had been made. When I was certain the coast was clear, I ducked into the dimly lit shop after the others.

The small dark room we found ourselves in was empty. I detected voices murmuring quietly in a back room somewhere though. One of them had such a distinct and awkward slang to it that it could only be one person.

"Jade?" Marsellis called out. He had heard it too, apparently.

Two faces abruptly appeared from down the hall and behind the counter, the one undeniably belonging to the frog like female. She grinned, baring a set of sharp, razor teeth for the first time since her transformation, and I felt a shiver run up my spine.

"Oh good." Jade said, relieved, and hobbled out into the main room. She was followed by an elderly lady in thick skirts and a white blouse that I assumed must be the shop keeper.

"What's happenen'?" Yuffie droned idly as she perused the shelves that held the tranquilizers.

"Your companion here is going to need something stronger than a Maiden's Kiss I'm afraid." Said the shopkeeper gravely. "This is such an extremely odd case. I've never heard of such a thing happening let alone seen it, but lately it seems like everything's a bit out of wack."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

She shook her head lightly. "Enormous sea creatures, white bulls whisking away maidens, talking goat men, nymphs - everything you can imagine finding in a mythology book, and it's all of a sudden right here on our doorstep. The rumors I've been hearing are out of this world. I just don't get it. And then there's these ingrates." She huffed furiously and gestured towards the outside. "I'd watch yourselves. Anyone whose not among them disappears rather quickly around here. The smart ones split town while their necks were sill intact."

"When did they get here?" I pressed.

"A week ago. They had some powerful allies with them then, though I haven't seen them much lately - blacked robed things. I won't call them human because I know they weren't, even if they looked marginally like it." She explained ominously. "It's gotten rough around here. Usually there are some nice people around, but this...this is just an infestation of evil and corruption."

Jade was peering cautiously through one of the windows at the moment, and her face slowly contorted into an anxious scowl. She wandered back over towards us, casting a wary glance over her shoulder as she did. "I think...ve vill be needing...the back door." She announced gravely.

"Huh? Why?" Yuffie blurted out, her eyes noticeably shifty, as if she had been up to something that was not quite morally correct. "What's goin' on out there?"

As Yuffie tried to take a look Jade clumsily barred her path, shaking both hands in front of her. "Really. I mean it... I, uh, zort of made a zene...on my vay here." She admitted sheepishly. "A big zene."

"As in?" Marsellis pried hesitantly.

"I'm zorry... but ve're not on very...good termz...vith the people here anymore." Jade said regretfully. "Or I'm not anyvay. Let'z go. Now vould be good." She insisted urgently, waving us forward with her abnormally long fingers.

The old shopkeeper bustled up to the front door and stole a glance outside. She swiftly turned around, smiling brightly at us as she positioned herself squarely in front of the door. "I believe she is right. Now would be a _very_ good time to go. Quick!" She said, shooing us all behind the counter and into the narrow hall. "She knows the way. Get out of here."

Jade immediately took the lead. It wasn't very far to the back door, but due to the large amounts of obstruction in the room behind the shop, getting there was quite the task. It was like running a maze, but one that was not specifically designed with a destination in mind.

"Here." Jade announced and sprang over an old antique table, making it look far too easy than I knew it would be for me. In fact, I didn't even try any fancy hurtling moves. I just climbed over it.

The door which she had been referring to was slightly ajar and a sliver of light was cast on the dusty floor boards. Jade quietly slipped one large eye in the crack to look out. Her head jerked back sharply and she looked back at me. "Ve have zome company." She informed me. "I'll try and get them out of the vay...zo maybe they don't bother you."

Amazingly, her sword was still with her. She unceremoniously ripped it from the scabbard and charged outside shouting threats that sounded utterly silly in her exotic style of speech. "Vhat are you looking at...you pompouz vindbag!"

I hesitated just inside, listening to the ongoing conversation that had unexpectedly begun outside. If she needed help, we'd be right within reach.

Someone laughed, which was followed by a sickening slopping sound, and then a painful cry. "Augh!" One man shouted. "Get yer filthy tongue away from me you - you frog-bitch!"

"I'm very zenzitive, azz hole." She retorted curtly. "And getz that zilly zvord...out of my faze. Hey, ouch! Vhat's your problem anyvay! Thiz iz dizcrimination against, uh, frog people...you know."

"Just kill her already." Someone said angrily. "I'm gettin' tired of lookin' at her ugly face."

"You're not zo hot yourzelf, zit faze." Jade managed.

There was another cry, this one far more fatal than the previous, and it was a masculine voice. Shouts erupted from the fallen victim's comrades, and metal suddenly clashed against metal viciously. Grunting and shuffling resounded from just beyond the door as they skirmished in what hardly sounded like an elegant battle.

"You think we should help her maybe?" Marsellis suggested edgily.

A blade thudded against the wall just inches to the right of the door, startling me backwards. The metallic ring of a sword as it swept through the air rang out clear and foreboding, and then there was the sound of the blow as it tore through flesh and bone. There was only a vague gurgling noise, as it had struck the man's throat and cut his vocals down before he could scream.

Another attacker erupted in a fierce battle shriek and then there were rapidly charging footsteps. Their swords met, clanging loudly and causing my ears to ring for a second.

Then I heard her gasp in pain as a struggle ensued.

"Zhit." She breathed painfully. "Pleaze...help."

I chose that time to thrust open the door, which incidently slammed directly into her adversary and knocked him to the ground. His sword fell from his clutches and I pounced before he had a chance to reclaim it. He lay on the ground shortly after words, bleeding from a severe broken nose and out cold. I stood, dusting off my hands for theatrical effect, and turned to the others.

Jade was clutching a wound in her stomach, but didn't seem to be too concerned by it. By that I mean she was staggering around on her feet and hadn't passed out yet. "Zorry. I'm not really that good...vith a sword. Come on." She said immediately, though it was clear that the injury was sapping a good portion of her energy. "Chaoz haz the boat. Follow me."

"But you're-"

She smiled weakly. "No time now." She replied. "I think...I'll be ok."

"Hey, hey, hey, we've got massive company headed this way!" Marsellis hollered from up ahead, behind the next building. Yuffie was there with him offering cover fire with her giant shuriken. The echo of gun fire filled the air from the street, and a new sense of urgency sank into the forefront of my mind.

"Yeah. Hurry up. We don't have all day, ya know." Yuffie barked impatiently.

Jade bounded in front of me with a sort of hopping motion, and continued passed the others determinedly, keeping one hand pressed firmly against her bleeding wound. I followed her closely, though it was surprisingly more difficult keeping up than I expected to be. She could move at an amazingly fast pace for someone whose feet were not meant to walk on solid ground effectively.

Yuffie and Marsellis had fallen in right behind. We ran in a single filed line, darting behind buildings, into shadows, and through over growth when it was there, while avoiding the searching eyes of our pursuers. I had barely even caught a glimpse of them yet, but I knew they were there. The adrenaline pumping through my body was not present for nothing. Someone was looking for us and I could feel their power emanating from all around me, it was so strong.

More shots chased after us and as Jade rounded another building. She stopped short, barely avoiding a bullet as it splintered against the corner of the log structure. She pressed her back against the house, her breathing raged and fierce. She looked over at me sternly.

"The boat..." She strained, "you muzt follow around the outzkirtz of the village. Then, right before the dockz, there vill be a fountain of three mermaidsz and zeveral pathz that lead avay from it to different boatz."

Another bullet struck to wood just inches off her right shoulder. There were voices barking orders around the corner, and approaching footsteps.

Yuffie darted just far enough around beyond the cover of the wall to launch her weapon in an effort to keep them at bay. She caught it on its return then and shrank bank into the shadows of our hiding, a relay of shots following closely at her heels.

Jade was a great deal more moist than she had been before, as her human pores had begun to sweat profusely, and I was becoming increasingly worried. If she didn't deal with it soon she'd be in trouble.

"Just let me cure you, Jade." I said. "Then you can-"

"No." She cut in curtly. "It von't vork. Juzt lizten. There iz a path partly hidden by treez on the right of the last vizible dock - look clozely for it. Follow that, and you vill eventually reach a private wharf. I vill give you vhat time I can to reach it, but there vill be some oppozition regardlezz."

"Wait a damn minute." Marsellis interrupted sharply and leveled her with a stern gaze. "You are _not _gonna go off and commit sepuku for some 'greater cause' bull shit. Martyrdom is way overrated anyway."

Jade seemed a bit at a loss for words at that. She pursed her lips in frustration, "But, I'm not going to commit zepuku!" She claimed angrily. "At leazt, I don't _plan _to anyvay. Anything could happen I guezz but...oh damn it. I'm not good vith thiz. Vould you pleaze truzt me, ok? I know a few trickz."

"Like what?" I glared at her expectantly.

"I'll tell you vhat I can, but later." She pleaded. "Ve have no more time!"

Jade was absolutely right too. A second later they were practically on top of us. Our only option was to take to the trees, which fortunately for us were nearby.

I ran blindly through the under brush, half expecting to feel the piercing shock of a bullet as the rounds echoed behind us, but none ever came, although they did occasionally hit nearby trees. Sometimes I glanced back when I had the time, just to make sure that Yuffie and Marsellis were still with me. They were, but Jade was gone, as I expected she would be.

We hadn't gone very far when a loud crack resounded from where we had come, like a shockwave had erupted. The cries of pain and alarm were distant, but audible. Whatever she had done, if it had indeed been her, was a fairly devastating and unexpected blow. There was no time to contemplate it further, as I had a job to do.

When we finally made it to the fountain, we were not alone. Their numbers were fewer here, but there were still some pirates alert and prepared for battle. Not so many that the three of us couldn't take them on, but enough that they posed a serious threat if someone slipped up badly.

"No use waiting around now." I said grimly and charged to face them head on.

Yuffie was on my right and Marsellis on the left. The fight broke out quickly and ferociously, but we cleaved our way through the first wave of opposition on the first run about. Another line waited on the far side of the fountain between us and the secret path Jade had spoken of. We hit them too.

My opponent was lightningquick and carried a rapier. He wielded it with precision and grace, unlike what I'd expect from a pirate, and I was taken off guard. At the first drawn blood, which was my own along the left shoulder, survival instinct set in and my determination hardened.

I stepped to the side of his sword on his next thrust, waiting, timing it just at the right moment where I could lunge in before he had a chance to follow up. My hands snatched his sword arm up swiftly, bringing it up and then twisting on his wrist so violently that he shrieked and dropped the weapon. I drove my knee into his stomach and brought my arms down together across the back of his neck. The blow was solid and the vertebras snapped, rendering him limp and lifeless.

We finished of the remaining two and sprinted down the path that supposedly led to the private dock. My fingers were crossed. It wasn't long before we met our destination, and there, atop the mast of large and beautiful ship, was Chaos with his wings spread open wide.

"What are you waiting for?" He called impatiently. "Fall behind and you will be left behind."

No one doubted his sincerity either. We high tailed it for the ship, knowing full well that there were many on our trail. At least Chaos had been generous enough to clear out those pirates who had been waiting around here for us. There were at least a dozen dead and strewn along the beach before the dock.

As we were thudding across the wooden bridge to the ship, Yuffie made a startling inquiry. "What about Jade?"

I stopped, staring back they way we had come anxiously. She was not there though. "I...I don't know." I answered. "She'll have to take care of herself. That's what she wanted."

And then it happened. Jade came flying out of the trees, not intentionally, and crashed to the ground in a crumpled heat heap. Smoke furled from the remnants of her tattered clothing as she rolled over painfully. The cause soon appeared, swirling black robes touching the ground as he walked, and his hood pulled up over his head to conceal all beneath. Steel gray hands were visible from within the folds of his garment's baggy sleeves, and from them a strange power emanated. He fired balls of flame in rapid succession at her as she lay there vulnerable to the onslaught.

At that moment I was certain that this would be the end of her. I stared helplessly, my breath lodged in the base of my throat as I reached out to her, though she was well beyond our reach.

Then it happened. Her voice rang out loud and clear, but I could not understand the command which left her lips. She held her palms out in front of her, as if to shield herself, and as the fire hit, they melted into a pale blue sphere. It was invisible for the most part, as it was only seen when the attack made contact with it.

"Bloody fool!" Marsellis fumed. "What the hell is she doing, facing one of them!"

The black mage reared back for another spell as Jade was swaggering slowly to her feet. She crouched then, gearing up to spring, and as the robed caster summoned his killing blow, Jade flung herself at him with all of her remaining strength.

They collided as the spell was taking effect, and the resulting explosion was deafening. Both mage and amphibian girl were thrown a considerably distance in opposite directions. Jade had, in the event of being forced away by the raw power of his magic, managed to propel herself towards the water and succeeded in landing, unconscious, beside the ship.

"Damn." Marsellis cursed and shoved passed me in his panicked haste. "I'll get her. One of you better throw me a rope." He leapt over the side of the ship an instant later, and then there was a muffled splash afterwards.

"Gawd, I hate boats!" Yuffie groaned and went stirring around in her pockets. She pulled out, not one, but three tranquilizers. "But _this _is just insane. I'll be throwin' up everywhere."

"Did you pay for those?" I asked, knowing full well that she hadn't.

Yuffie shifted her weight uneasily from one leg to the other, her eyes darting every which way. "W-what are you insinuating?" She stammered guiltily.

I shook my head weakly. "Nevermind. We better help Marsellis, or they'll both drown."

"Doesn't it take a crew to man one of these things?" Yuffie asked as she followed me.

I halted sharply. "Oh no."

Chaos' bellowing laughter sounded out from above then and he glided down to the deck beside us. "Not to worry, little kits." He seethed. "You've taken me for quite the fool if you think I'd forget." He clicked his fingers three times then, and from out of the woodwork came all manners of men, and woman alike, looking rather terrified. "Time to leave, rodents. Get to work!"

There was not even the slightest hesitation as all of them shot off in different directions to follow orders, leaving Yuffie and I quite puzzled.

"How...?" I trailed off, glancing around dumbly.

He grinned coolly. "Demon, Tifa. That _word_ instills the deepest fear in any man, let alone the actual presence of one." He explained. "Now, I don't suppose you want Marsellis and the ridiculous frog demon to die, though I could care less either way."

"Oh!" I exclaimed, remembering again, and grabbed the nearest coil of rope I could find. "We're coming Marsellis!"

"Well it's about bloody time!" He shouted, sputtering water. "Do you have any idea how heavy -choke- an unconscious person is -cough- in water! Not to mention her-" short silence, "_fucking _horns have nearly gored me twice!"

Yuffie smirked. "He sure whines a lot."

I smiled back at her as I tossed the rope down to him. "But he's really not all that bad."

"Nah." She answered.

**

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**Author's Notes: **Wow, it is finally here. Gosh, I should really put more effort into this story. There are so many goodies to work with when delving into Greek mythology. I had a massive break through for Jade's character recently, and that's what really propelled me to get this finished(not to mention some late reviews that I got - glad to know there are people still reading this). Hopefully she's not too over the top, or Mary Sue like. I thought I'd beat her up really good just to ensure that she wasn't, and not to mention she's a froggy person now, heh.

However, I'm still concerned that the original characters will turn people off. I don't _want _them too, and they're certainly aren't meant to be stealing the spotlight from all the loveable Final Fantasy 7 characters either. I just thought, to test myself, I'd try and make some original characters appealing. So, hopefully for all those people who have recently reviewed (and the oldies too, if you're still there), this is satisfactory.

Oh, and if you'd like to see my sketch of Jade the Frog, check my profile. There should be a link to it, if I managed to get it to work that is, heh.

Always a pleasure, and I'll probably do a bit more editing on this later on. If there are a few rough spots, I apologize, but I just really want to get this thing out at last. I'm so happy now, hehe. Take care (and don't forget that 'review' button now),

Faerlyte


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